Not All Arrogance: A Gary Oak Love Story
by JoyHeart
Summary: Amy Tanner OC wanted to go on her Pokemon journey with her friend Ash, but her dad is a !@# and makes her travel with her enemy Gary instead. Strangely, Gary agrees to this arrangement. OCXGary Cover image by ToxicLoveYGX on Quizilla.
1. Old Enemies, New Travel Partners?

**DISCLAIMER:** If I owned Pokemon, I'd be rich. I am not rich, so I am to assume I do not own them. Please do not believe otherwise.

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 1~Old Enemies, New Travel Partners?**

_((Joyful Note: You will all hate me for this, I'm sure. I haven't put out part 10 of my OC south park story. I haven't written more DeanXCas stories. But I am putting out this. But hear me out! I've already written this story! An age ago, hell, I'm halfway through a sequel! So seriously, I'm just editing it and putting it out there on a site where it's easier to read, that's no crime right? I know its pokemon, I know it's another OC, but it is good I've been told. So give it a chance folks? Oh, and new readers, welcome to my section of , hope you stick with me on this! Oh and, I made all characters upgrade to age 15. Because I know they're still kids, but age 10 just seems a little too young for this story, I mean, that's grade 4. No. 15 at least gets them to freshmen level which is more reasonable I think. Basically, this story is about my OC Amy who travels with Gary Oak and it has allusions to the video games and the anime. But it's all my own story, so expect lots of uncanon things to go on))_

"Hey give that back Gary you sleaze!" Amy yelled as she tried to snatch back the Trainer's manual she had been reading moments before Gary-Oak-the-Sleaze had snatched it out of her hands. He'd lived next door to her for her whole life and was continuously driving her insane. Granted, she drove him insane as well, but that was totally beside the point. He was a sleaze; she was allowed to drive him insane!

"What's the magic word?" Gary sneered. Amy grated her teeth and made a fist.

"Give it back or I'll pound your face in!" she growled.

"Yeah right." Gary snorted. "Go get it!" he threw it over Amy's head into the dirt.

"JERK!" Amy yelled and threw a swing at Gary who dodged it neatly and walked off laughing. Amy growled under her breath as she watched him leave. "JUST WAIT TILL TOMORROW WHEN I GET A POKEMON! I'LL WIPE THE FLOOR WITH YOU!!"

Gary just laughed harder. Amy's hands curled into fists again. "Why you little..."

"Hey Amy! This is yours right?" Amy turned to see her best friend, Ash, picking up her book from the dirt, wiping it off and handing it to her.

"Oh, yes, thanks Ash." Amy said smiling a bit and taking it. "Gary threw it. The sleezeball." she sent a glare over her shoulder.

"No kidding." Ash nodded in agreement. "So, we're getting Pokémon tomorrow!"

"Yep!" Amy said grinning, happy at this change of subject. "I can't wait, which one are you going to get?"

Ash shrugged. "No idea. I really like Squirtle, but Bulbasaur's awesome too, and Charmander has awesome fire power!"

Amy laughed "Well I really don't have any idea yet either to be honest."

"I'm sure we'll figure it out- oh right! I have to get home and start packing for tomorrow. See ya!" Ash exclaimed and rushed down the road to his house in the small town of Pallet. They'd both lived here their whole lives, and tomorrow they'd be leaving it to start their Pokemon journey. They hadn't actually said it, but they kind of assumed they'd be traveling together.

" I guess I'll get started too, see you tomorrow at the lab Ash!" Amy called and waved goodbye before heading for home herself. She glanced down at her Trainer's manual. It had a guide to every town in Kanto and she and Ash were going to visit them all, and compete in every gym of course. Amy finally reached her house and opened the front door.

"I'm home!" she called and started to head up to her room.

"Amy? Could you come in here a minute?" it was Amy's dad. Her mom had died when she was very young. Ash had a single parent too, but they didn't know if his dad was alive or dead. He left on his Pokémon journey long ago and never came back. Amy thought his mom was amazing to still trust her son enough to let him go out on a journey as well. Even if she made him promise to call every chance he got.

Amy joined her dad in the living room. "What's up?" she asked sitting on the couch with him.

Her father was somewhat of a thin man, but he was strong as well. She had never seen her dad cry, not once that she could remember though she supposed he must have cried when her mother died. Now however, he seemed dangerously close to it and this was scaring her a little.

"Sweetheart, you know I love you, and I worry about you a lot, I'm not sure you're ready to go live on your own." he said slowly drawing out his words as if afraid his voice would crack if he took them too quickly.

Amy stared at him like she couldn't believe it. "But Dad! I have to go! I've been waiting for this my, my whole life! Besides, I won't be alone, I'll be with Ash."

"Yes, well I don't trust that boy to protect you. Besides, he has deserter genes. You know his father..."

"Okay, one, I don't NEED him to protect me! I can protect myself, and I'll have my Pokémon to protect me as well! Two, just cause his dad isn't around doesn't mean he deserted them and even if he DID that doesn't mean Ash would do the same thing!" Amy was furious now.

"Amy. I'm sorry, but as long as you remain my responsibility you aren't going! When you turn 18, I won't be able to stop you, but until then, tough!"

"But Dad! By then Ash and Gary could already be champions! I can't just be left behind!" Amy cried, her eyes were beginning to water.

"No, and that's final! It's for your own good!" her father finished and then stood abruptly and left the room.

Amy shivered, stood, and ran to her room. She slammed the door and fell onto her Jigglypuff print bedspread, sobbing. About an hour later her dad knocked on the door and told her to come down for supper. She yelled back that she wasn't hungry, even though her stomach was growling loudly. Finally she rose her head from the mattress with a plan. She'd pack her bags, sneak out of the house before her dad got up, and go to Professor Oak's to get a Pokémon and leave before he could stop her. She'd leave him a note explaining why she had to go. He'd forgive her... eventually. Deciding this, she began to carefully pack her bags. After her dad went to bed she snuck downstairs to get food and things she didn't have in her room. She set her alarm and fell asleep.

*****

The alarm buzzed and Amy quickly turned it off. She listened closely for her dad and hearing only snores from the next room she got out of bed to dress in her jeans and pink shell top. Lifting her bag onto her shoulders she crept out of her room, down the hallway, and out the door. She was heading straight for the lab. It was about a 10 minute walk from her house, so it wasn't long before the large windmill came into view. Once it did Amy ran down the road until she reached it. It seemed that she was the first to arrive, which made sense since the sun was just beginning to rise when she'd left.

"Hey, look what the Meowth dragged in!" Gary's voice rang behind her. Amy groaned.

"Where's Ashy boy? You dump him?"

"We aren't going out! And he'll be here! I just, wanted to get here early." Amy mumbled the last part. She started up the walk toward the lab's door.

"Well gramps wanted me to come early. I have told you Professor Oak's my grandfather right?" Gary said smirking.

"Only 37 times since last week, not to mention having grown up next door to you and being introduced to him but I know your smartness level would make that hard to recall" Amy replied rolling her eyes as she rose her hand to knock.

Gary huffed and folded his arms "Smartness isn't a word"

Professor Oak opened the door. He didn't look surprised to see Amy this early.

"Alright, come in. I have to talk to you both." his face was unreadable.

"Um, okay..." Amy said uncertainly. Gary looked confused as well, but they both followed the Professor inside. He took them into his living room and told them to have a seat. The both sat as far from each other as possible on the couch, Prof. Oak sat opposite them.

"Amy, you're father called me last night." Prof. Oak said look at her with a very serious expression. Amy stared back in shock, then sighed.

"So, he told you not to give me a Pokémon?" Amy said hanging her head. Gary's eyes turned to her in shock.

"Yes. He seemed to anticipate you would try to come and get one even though he told you not to. However, I asked his reason for this denial and then I tried to talk him into letting you go anyway." Prof. Oak explained.

Life returned to Amy then. "You did? What did he say? What did YOU say?"

"Well, he finally said you could go, but only if you were with someone he trusted not to let anything happen to you. Someone he thought was... strong enough to protect you. Also, you could not travel with Ash. He really doesn't like that boy." Prof. Oak shook his head. Gary seemed intensely interested at this point.

"I know that." Amy sighed.

"So," the professor went on "I asked him if he had anyone in mind who COULD accompany you, and, he said that if I really wanted you to be able to start a journey, I would convince my grandson Gary to go with her."

Amy and Gary stared at the Pokémon expert before them for a few moments until it hit them, coincidently at the same time.

"NOT HAPPENING" They both shouted simultaneously.

"Amy, this is the only way for you to go. You can only get your Pokémon license through me, and I won't give it to you unless you and Gary both sign an agreement that you will travel together. I will not disrespect you father's wishes."

Amy hesitated. "I really want to go on this journey. I've waited my whole life. I wanted to start with Ash, and I know he'd wait for me, but I won't hold him back. If this is the only way... I guess I'll do it. But I won't like it. I know why my father said that. He figures I'd NEVER agree to travel with Gary Oak, but I won't give him that satisfaction. I will do it, if Gary agrees, although I realise he has no ties to this and it's highly unlikely that he'll want to. I mean, he hates me. Don't you?" Amy said turning to Gary. He looked at her oddly.

"I don't hate you." he said quietly. "Look, I don't want to babysit you," Amy felt a flash of anger when he said that "But I think that you're dad's being a real jerk not letting you go out on a journey, and I know that gramps will never shut up about it if I say no..." Gary trailed off.

Amy`s mouth dropped open slightly. "So... you're saying yes?" she couldn't believe it.

"Yeah sure whatever." he shrugged. "But you'd better not slow me down!" he snapped.

Amy actually smiled a bit. "We'll see who's slowing who down."

*****

So after signing the papers, they headed for the room where they would receive their Pokémon. Amy couldn't believe this. Gary had agreed. Okay, maybe he wasn't a total sleezeball. But he was still an arrogant jerk. Not to mention Amy was apprehensive about how her father was going to react to the fact she had agreed. She had read the contract before she'd signed it, and her father had said in it that if she broke the contract he'd get the police to bring her straight home. This was serious stuff. Why was her father acting this way? In any case, all such thoughts as these vanished when Amy looked upon the Pokémon in the choosing room. There were a Charmander, Bulbasaur and Squirtle, sitting on the table. Suddenly a thought occurred to Amy.

"But Professor, I thought there were 6 trainers coming today? There's only 3 Pokémon." she said confused.

"Yes, I, erm, sort of stashed away a few special Pokémon for you, Gary and Ash. Don't tell anyone though, or I'll really be in trouble." he handed them each 5 Pokeballs and a Pokedex, and then headed for the backroom. He came out with two Eevees.

"I would have liked to have gotten three, but Ash will have to settle for something a bit different." Oak said with a smile and the Eevees both leaped into both Gary's and Amy's arms.

"They're so cute! I'm going to name you Isis!" Amy laughed and cuddled the small fox Pokémon to her chest.

"Isis? Okay, well I'll name mine Slasher!" Gary said smirking.

The Eevees and Amy looked at him with distaste.

"What?" he asked raising an eyebrow.

"Slasher? How could you name such a cute thing Slasher?" Amy said putting her hands on her hips, Isis having moved to her shoulder.

"Well okay what would YOU name him then?" Gary snapped angrily

Amy thought for a moment gazing at his Eevee "Socrates." she said finally.

Gary opened his mouth to protest but his Eevee squealed with delight.

"Looks like a winner!" Prof. Oak said smiling.

"Socrates. Great." Gary muttered. He returned Socrates into his Pokeball, and Amy returned Isis. They headed out the door, followed by Prof. Oak, who was smiling in some state of smugness over how well things were going for him or something. Strange old man.

They came outside to a crowd of cheering townsfolk. Gary's mom and dad were in front, but Amy couldn't see her father anywhere. She felt sad then. She didn't really want to leave without saying goodbye, and Ash wasn't even here yet...

"WAIT! WAIT FOR ME!!!!" Ash's voice rang over the din as he ran up... strangely in his pyjamas, panting profusely.

"Amy, you weren't about to leave without me were you?" Ash said laughing once he caught his breath. "Oh, hi Gary." he said in a low voice eyeing Gary standing beside Amy.

Before Amy could open her mouth Gary answered for her.

"Actually, she IS leaving without you; she's leaving with me because her father trusts me more then you. Too bad. But Gramps'll explain, my folks got me a new car for my journey, so I can travel in style and speed. It's a convertible, nice huh? Come on Amy" he grabbed her wrist and started to pull her towards the red vehicle nearby.

Amy twisted free "YOU JERK!" she yelled and ran back to Ash. "Ash, I'm, I'm sorry but he's right, the only way I can go on my journey is if I go with Gary, my dad made me sign a contract to get a Pokémon, he'll disown me if I break it now, he's the only family I have, well, Ash, I'm REALLY sorry, but we'll see each other again, I promise." tears were sliding down her cheeks as her words fired out like a machine gun. It wasn't fair!

"Amy?" Ash seemed to only partially comprehend what she was saying, but it would hit him soon.

"AMY!" Gary honked his horn.

"HAVE SOME PATIENCE WILL YOU!" Amy screamed back. "Ash, I really am sorry, I do have to go with him. I don't want to. But it was the only way. But good luck with your journey. Oh, and, you might want to get out of your pjs before you leave on your journey, just some advice." she laughed shakily.

Ash looked down, blushed, and laughed a bit too, but he sounded like he was starting to understand "Yeah, right, okay. Bye." he said quietly and turned away. Amy stared at him a moment. Then Gary's annoying honking made her turn, glare, then sigh as she headed towards him.

_'This'_ she thought _'stinks.'_

_((Joyful Note: Right. So basically I'm bored and am lacking inspiration for my other work so I'm just editing what I've already done. Oh well, at least I can read reviews on this site. From what I understand, this series gets better as it goes, so stick with me and review if you like it!))_


	2. An Unexpected Roadblock

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 2~An Unexpected Roadblock**

_((Joyful Note: Yeah... I think things started getting improving in chapter 3, so I hope I can put that much out today at least. Hooray for editing, its so mind numbing I'm not even thinking about my exaaaa-ams.... crap. Oh well, I'll get this out at least!))_

"Of course being the grandson of a famous Pokémon professor has its downsides too, like I'm always getting people asking me questions about him, and I've had to make some television appearances, but really, I believe that the most..." Gary went on... and on... and on...

Amy had tuned him out 10 minutes ago, though he still nattered in the background of her thoughts. They had only been driving about a quarter of an hour and Gary was already driving her up the wall. She expected herself to yell at him to shut up very soon now.

She absently took out a Pokeball and began to play with it in her hands as she stared out the windshield. She still couldn't understand why her father had suddenly said she couldn't go on a Pokémon journey. Actually, it wasn't so sudden she supposed. He had been getting steadily more and more on edge since Amy had been approved to receive her Pokémon license over a month ago. Amy still didn't understand why he would be so apprehensive about it. Because of whatever her father's problem was, she was now forced to travel with 24/7 talkfest Gary, and as bad is that was for Amy, she imagined Ash was even worse off. He was stuck alone, what if he thought she had abandoned him or something? That would be awful! These thoughts consumed Amy as they drove.

"And once Socrates evolves, into a Jolteon, or maybe an Umbreon if I can't find a Thunderstone, they're hard to find, I'm going to beat every loser who..." Gary continued to talk; unaware that Amy was ignoring him. She was in fact about to tell him to shut up or she was going to blow out a tire on this godforsaken car. However, they just rounded a bend and standing in the middle of the road was a figure with its arms outstretched to either side of him, blocking the way.

Amy let out a yell and Gary swerved and hit the break. They stopped inches from the figure, now right beside Amy's side of the car. He hadn't moved an inch. Amy let out a small gasp. It was her father.

"Dad, wha-what are you doing here? We could have killed you!" Amy whispered, scared at the intense look in her father's eyes.

"Sure, you could have killed me, but what do you care? You're going to kill yourselves!" her father snapped. Amy recoiled but recovered.

"Dad! I'm traveling with Gary just like it said in your contract I signed! You can't stop me now! Besides, my Pokémon will protect me so-"

"Protect you? HA! Your Pokémon will be the death of you, you mark my words! They'll turn on you! HOW DO YOU THINK YOUR MOTHER DIED!?" He yelled. Amy froze, dumbfounded, even Gary was silent, either because of his non-stop bragging session exhausted him or he actually didn't have anything to say.

"You never told me how she died. You only told me I was 2 years old at the time. That's all." Amy said once she regained her voice, shaky as it was.

Her father drew a breath as shaky as Amy's voice. "When she was alive, your mother was a great Pokémon trainer, as was I, I suppose. But one day, I came home from the park with you, and the kitchen, was a mess, and on the floor was your m-mother. She was c-covered with," the normally reserved man had a dry sob issue from his lips before continuing "Bites and scratches! All over! And you know what was beside her, licking her wounds? Licking her BLOOD? Her own Ninetails! I yelled, and grabbed a broom. I chased it away, I bashed it a couple times, it never returned. I hurried you into your room and locked the door. I called the hospital, but it was too late. She had been dead before we had gotten home. I then sent hers and my Pokémon far away, to gyms where they would be another's burden, I wanted you as far away from Pokémon as possible. But it was useless; you had your mother's... fascination for the beasts. Oh sure, you may think your Pokémon is cute now, but it will turn on you. I told people your mother died falling down the stairs, I didn't want anyone saying she died because she was a bad Pokémon trainer, it wasn't her fault, no one can truly control those, those, DEATH MACHINES!" Amy's father, her pillar of stability all her childhood years, fell to his knees, sobbing freely.

"Daddy..." Amy whispered and reached towards him, but hesitated when her father's head snapped up towards her, fires of a crazy man blazing in his eyes.

"I won't lose you, I WONT LOSE YOU TOO!" he yelled and lunged towards his daughter, but Gary stepped on the gas and they zoomed away leaving her father, who pierced the air with angry cries of anguish.

"Sorry dad... I never knew... but I can't..." Amy whispered to herself. "He's gone insane, I think." she directed this last statement to Gary, who was white faced.

"Yeah." he said softly. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a cell phone.

"What are you doing?" Amy asked confused.

"Calling gramps, I'm not sure your dad's going to go straight home, so I think gramps might have to come get him." Gary said dialling.

"Well pull over first! Don't you know the statistics for car crash victims that talk on a cell phone while driving?" Amy snapped, her annoyance at Gary a welcome distraction from the new, disturbing information she had just received.

"Fine." Gary said rolling his eyes and pulling over.

Amy was a bit surprised at his compliance without argument. When he started talking, Amy stared off into the forest beside the dirt road they were traveling on. She was thinking about what her dad had said, about her mother's death. From the sound of it, he was jumping to conclusions, her Ninetails could have been protecting her from something else, but... what Pokémon WOULD have done it? She couldn't think clearly. Suddenly her attention was diverted by movement in the bushes. Gary wasn't paying attention to Amy, so he didn't notice as she left the car and headed towards the moving bush. She crept, slowly, slowly, towards it. Taking a deep breath she pulled aside the brambles and saw, to her shock and delight, a tiny Spearow, probably a baby, sitting there. It squawked in fear when it saw her, and winced as it moved its wing. It seemed broken. Amy felt a twang of sympathy.

"Shh shh, it's okay, I'm your friend, I'll help you, shh..." Amy whispered soothingly to the tiny creature. It cocked its head slightly, then sighed and bowed its head. Amy smiled and picked it up, it trembled slightly, but it seemed like it wasn't in any life threatening danger. Still, she felt he should probably see a doctor. She straightened up and headed back to the car, the bird Pokémon cradled to her chest. It WAS tiny, only a bit bigger than the palm of Amy's hand.

Gary was only just getting off the phone. "Well, gramps said he was going to send out a search party and... why are you out there? Hey, that's a Pokémon!" Gary said shocked. He started to pull out his Pokedex.

"Don't bother, it's a Spearow, honestly, I thought you were a grandson of a famous Pokémon professor, you don't even know a Spearow when you see one?" Amy said rolling her eyes and getting in the car. She decided to think about her father issues later. "I think its wing's broken, so let's get to Viridian Pokémon Center okay?" Amy said smiling ever so slightly.

"No way! Not until I catch a Pokémon too!" Gary snapped. Amy stared at him.

"Gary, I just said this Spearow is HURT." Amy said exasperated.

"Well I doubt it'll take long, I mean, if you found one so fast... just stay here I'll be back..." Gary was out of the car and into the woods before Amy could comprehend the situation. Shaking her head, Amy leaned back against her seat and the Spearow, now on her lap, adjusted itself and was soon dozing. Amy closed her eyes, and before she knew it, she was sound asleep as well.

*****

When Amy woke in near pitch blackness to a horrible screeching, she realised it was the Spearow in her lap. At first she thought it might be hungry, when the sound of loud chittering approached, along with a loud yelling. Jerking her head and straining to see into the darkness, Amy witnessed Gary running with a terrified look on his face out of the trees, with a swarm of Rattata on his tail. Amy sat stunned as Gary ran around the car, hopping over the door rather than opening it, revved the engine and took off down the road.

"What happened?!" Amy asked quieting the Spearow.

"Well, um, I caught a Pokémon! A Raticate, a big one too!" Gary said grinning. His face was dirty, and he was sweating.

"Soooo....." Amy said raising a tired eyebrow.

"Erm, that didn't make the Rattata happy.... they aren't still back there are they?" Gary asked hesitantly.

Amy glanced back into the dark, no glowing eyes were to be seen "Nope." Amy sighed.

"Great," Gary said relaxing. "Anyway, the Raticate I got would beat that scrawny Spearow in a second, it put up quite a fight, but in the end, Socrates beat him, I swear we barely got out alive! We-" Gary stopped suddenly, Amy had stiffened and was shaking slightly.

"Amy, oh, sorry, I didn't mean to..." he trailed off. He had inadvertently brought up Pokémon killing and well... the human mind connects the worst things sometimes.

_  
'So much for putting that out of my mind.'_ Amy thought to herself. They drove on in silence a bit. Amy found she almost missed Gary's constant stream of words.

Suddenly Amy started to feel drops of water on her hair. Gary seemed to have noticed the rain as well and pushed a button on the dashboard, making the convertible's roof go up. The windshield wipers turned on as well. It wasn't all that long before they finally saw the lights of Viridian, just as the sky started to thunder. Amy hoped Ash was okay, wherever he was.

When they at last reached the Pokémon center, Gary parked and they ran through the rain towards the building before them. It was raining so hard out that by the time they had gotten inside they were already nearly soaked to the skin. Amy shook out her hair and then took the Spearow to the counter where a red-headed woman in a nurse's uniform was typing on a computer. She looked up as Amy approached.

"Hello, I'm Nurse Joy, how may I help you?" she asked.

*****

About 2 hours later, Amy was lying on the Pokémon center bed; she had taken the top bunk after a brief dispute with Gary. Seeing as Amy was a master at Rock Paper Scissors though, she won the rights. Isis was at her feet, happy to be breathing fresh air. The Spearow had its wing bound and was roosting on the post by Amy's head. He had his own Pokeball now had had been dubbed Avion. Socrates was sleeping on Gary's chest. (How he could stand it with Gary's snoring Amy sure didn't know) but Gary's Raticate was still in its ball. Amy didn't blame Gary for naming this one Slasher, she felt it fully deserved that name. It looked scary

In any case, she was tired even after her nap in the car and soon she had fallen asleep. So much for her first day as a Pokemon Trainer.

_((Joyful Note: Is it good yet? I don't know. I'll start editing the 3__rd__ part anyway and then I'll probably call it a day))_


	3. Meeting the Bad Guys

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 3~Meeting the Bad Guys**

_((Joyful Note: I think this is where I started showing the potential of this story. Hopefully you agree, as I'm leaving off here for today. Enjoy it. I know it doesn't match the anime but it's not like it's necessary for it to, so don't worry about that, and neither will I. Oh, and review if you like this story! I started writing it over a year ago, so I notice my style as changed as I'm editing it... oh no I'm rambling! Just read, read!))_

When Amy woke up the next morning, Isis was on her chest to greet her. Smiling, Amy hugged the fox Pokémon and turned to Avion, who was just waking up. He stretched his little wing that wasn't bound, and hopped onto Amy's finger when she offered it to him.

The brown haired girl quickly climbed down from her bed with Avion on her hand and Isis riding on her head. She glanced towards Gary's bed and saw it empty. She felt a little surprised to discover him up so early, after all it had to be only 7am. Amy shrugged it off however, and set her Pokémon on his bed before opening her bag to pull out a fresh set of clothes. She had a set for every day of the week, figuring she would wash them whenever she got the chance. Her set from yesterday had already been washed after she had changed into her pink pyjamas. She really liked the colour pink and was not afraid to admit it, unlike most girls her age who were in denial because it seemed too 'girly'.

Today though, she would be wearing a pair of blue bell bottom jeans and a white shirt with a musical note on it. She took her clothes and headed off for the shower. As the water poured over her, she started to sing. It wasn't really any particular song, just basically singing the notes, and humming.

"Hey Amy, that's you right?" she heard Gary's voice through the door.

"No, it's the Easter Azumarill!" Amy replied loudly, rolling her eyes.

She heard indistinct muttering before he went on "Well I brought up some breakfast from the restaurant thing down the hall, so we can eat and get over to the gym early." Gary said sounding a bit annoyed.

Amy raised her eyebrows at the wall and turned off the shower. "What'd you bring?" she asked as she towelled off her hair.

"Just toast and jam with orange juice, we want to be finished quick right?"

"Okay, I don't mind toast and jam, but why the hell do we need to be out of here so fast?" Amy had now pulled on her clothes and was brushing out her hair.

"I don't know, I just want to start training right away!"

Amy finished up, gathered her pjs in her arms and opened the door to see Gary in his blue sweatshirt and dark jeans, leaning against the wall, looking edgy.

"Well SOMEBODY woke up on the wrong side of the bed." Amy commented as she swept past him to the room they had slept in. She packed away her last belongings and then helped herself to the food Gary had brought for her. She actually thought it was kind of nice for him to bring up her food so she could sleep in later, if you could call 7am sleeping in, but she couldn't bring herself to actually thank him, she supposed it was a block that had formed in her mind from years of tormenting each other.

She shared the toast with Isis and Avion as well, and they seemed quite delighted with it. Gary was lying on his bed from the night before, his arms behind his head staring up in boredom. His Pokémon we already packed away in their Pokeballs, and Amy assumed they had already been fed. Amy finished up and shouldered her bag, returning Avion and Isis as she did so.

"Done?" Gary asked glancing at her.

"Yes."

"Finally!" Gary muttered loudly rolling his eyes. He sat up and proceeded to knock his head on the top bunk. Amy burst into a fit of laughter.

"Ouch, will you cut it out!" Gary snapped rubbing his head where it had hit.

"Careful, or you'll wind up messing up your hair" Amy said sarcastically as she swept from the room. Gary grumbled and followed.

*****

About an hour later they had signed out from the Pokémon center, made a quick call to Prof. Oak to say that had arrived in Viridian alright and were finally in front of Viridian gym. One problem, it was closed.

"What do you mean the leader's out of town?! What kind of gym is this? I'll be reporting this! I'll-" Gary was yelling at the guard in front of the door. He was a big man with a dark suit and sunglasses. Amy groaned and grabbing Gary's raised fist.

"Gary, cool it, if it's closed its closed okay? Sir, do you happen to know when the leader is coming back?" Amy asked politely.

"Sorry Miss, but I don't. Could be back later today, next week, next month..." the man replied in a deep, raspy voice.

"I AM NOT WAITING A MONTH!" Gary yelled and Amy elbowed him in the side, causing him to recoil slightly and glare at Amy as she smiled and nodded.

"That's alright, we'll just come by later and if he's not back, we'll just move on and come back at some other date, alright?" she said sweetly and waved bye, before pushing a still complaining Gary away.

"What do you mean we'll come back later today? I'm not waiting around for some guy to get off his lazy butt and do his job..."

"Gary! Honestly, only one more night here won't kill you! We'll wander around the city a bit, check back at the gym and if he's still not there we'll just leave tomorrow. So chill out!" Amy was getting exasperated with Gary's arrogant behaviour. She wanted to scream the world didn't revolve around him, but refrained in order to prevent making a scene in the middle of a crowded street. She pushed him to the car and climbed into the passenger's side. Gary grudgingly got into the driver's side.

"You know if we wait Ash might catch up with us." he spat suddenly as he started the engine.

"You make that sound like a bad thing." Amy said narrowing her eyes.

"Well, think about it, he probably hates you for just leaving him like that, so it'd probably be pretty awkward," Gary said rather quickly, as if trying to defuse her before she blew up at him.

Amy glared a moment longer, then sighed and faced the front. "I guess it could be... awkward, but I doubt he'd hate me for it, he knows it's not REALLY my fault." Amy paused a moment, thoughtful "He might hate you though." she said giving him a sideways glance.

To Amy's surprise, he laughed. "Well I guess he would, but hasn't he always?"

Amy smirked. "I suppose so, heck, I did. Actually, you still bother me, but hating you isn't as much fun since you said you didn't hate me." Gary went silent, appearing to be thinking about something. Amy cocked her head slightly. "What's up?"

"Nothing." he replied distantly. Amy bit her tongue hard to prevent a scream. She hated that answer. It was NEVER nothing.

"Gary, I have traveled with you for about a day now. You have barely spent ANY of that time not talking. Now you're silent. What's wrong?" Amy said sternly.

"It's none of your business!" Gary snapped, and caused the car to swerve a little.

Amy let out a long slow breath counting to ten as she did. "Alright, fine. Now, I'm hungry, it's about lunchtime, what's say we stop at that diner over there for lunch okay?" Amy said slowly and clearly pointing to a diner beside the road with a Munchlax on the sign and a number of cars in the parking lot.

Seeming glad that the subject changed Gary nodded. "Sure, seems sort of crowded though." Gary said as he searched for a parking space.

"That's how you know that food's good." Amy said with a giggle. She stopped abruptly and looked away however. She had suddenly felt she was having fun, with, with GARY. She shook her head to clear it and crossed her arms in front of her. She supposed she really SHOULD be having fun on her journey, but she felt bad doing so while Ash was off by himself. In any case, they went inside and after an excruciating long time they managed to get a table and some food.

Amy had picked well, the food was delicious. They ate pretty well in silence, Gary seemed on the verge of saying something or other but didn't. Amy found this made eating a lot more awkward, but she ignored it. Gary finished first and watched Amy as she continued to work on her French fries.

"Take a picture, it'll last longer." Amy said almost automatically as she swallowed and fished out another fry.

"Yeah but you're cuter in person." Gary smirked. Amy's eyes went wide and she started coughing violently. Gary lost his smirk and jumped up and ran around the table and pulled Amy out into the aisle, managing to knock her ketchup covered French fries unto her lap in the process. He proceeded to perform the Heimlich manoeuvre until the fry dislodged itself and she was able to swallow it normally. Gary groaned with relief and slumped back into his seat. Amy blinked and held her chest taking a few deep breathes. She then checked the damage on her clothes and found ketchup stains down her shirt. She let out a squeal and ran to the bathroom to try to wash it out. When she came back there were still orange stains down her shirt and people were crowding around Gary and then Amy as she approached him.

"You boy, are a hero!" said one little old lady thumping Gary on the back. Gary seemed to be glowing in the attention. Amy sucked in her cheeks and began again to count to ten.

"You're really lucky to have a boyfriend like him around!" said a man smiling at Amy. Amy's eyes went wide.

"Yes, never let go of this one here, especially if you're planning on eating so fast." said the lady who had spoken earlier. Amy's gaze shifted to Gary with burning intensity. He was still basking in his 'heroism'.

A kid with short blond hair smiled cheekily at Amy. "Aren't you gonna kiss him thank you?" he asked smiling.

Amy snapped. "HE IS NOT MY BOYFRIEND! HE IS A JERK! HE'S THE REASON I WAS CHOKING IN THE FIRST PLACE!" Amy screamed and the room went silent, everyone was staring at her. Amy turned on her heel and stormed out, grumbling about what an arrogant jerk Gary was. She ran out to the car, got in the passenger's side, and slammed the door. She sat glaring straight ahead, arms folded in front of the ketchup stains. Gary came out soon after her and stood outside the driver's side of the car.

"Look I'm sorry okay?" he sounded ticked off. Amy glared up at him.

"I am NOT your girlfriend you idiot! You should have pointed that out! AND I'd appreciate it if you NEVER say anything stupid and perverted like that AGAIN. GOT IT?" Amy said angrily.

Gary sighed. "Okay, you win, is that what you want to hear? I'll never give you a compliment again." Gary said and Amy shook her head in exasperation.

"Whatever. Let's just go okay? I think I may require a new shirt." Amy said re-inspecting her stains. THOSE weren't coming out any time soon.

*****

After acquiring a new shirt from a little boutique up the street (a bright red tank top with swirls all over it) the two of them spent the rest of the day basically driving around seeing the sites, not that there was a whole lot of those. At around 4pm they stopped by the gym. They found it still closed, so they headed for the Pokémon center. By the time they reached it the sun was starting to set. They had set up their room again and had supper.

The two of them were sitting in the lobby, Isis and Socrates chasing each other across the floor while Avion sat on Amy's shoulder as she sat reading over her town guide book. Gary was calling Prof. Oak again, to let him know the gym was closed. He was going on a rant. Just as he hung up the doors of the Pokémon center flew open and in stormed a police motorcycle with a blue haired female officer riding it, and a familiar black haired boy in the passenger seat.

"Ash?" Amy said blinking and Isis and Socrates stopped running around to watch Amy run over to him and give him a hug. "Ash! I'm so glad you're okay! What's with the police escort? You're not in trouble already are you?" she noticed the yellow Pokémon in his arms, it looked badly hurt. "What happened?!" Amy said alarmed.

"What, you torched your Pokémon already Ash? Some trainer you are." Gary sneered striding up beside Amy.

"Shut up Gary!" Ash snapped. "Pikachu and I got attacked by a flock of Spearow, I, erm, kinda threw a rock at one... Pikachu managed to fight them off, which was awesome, but it totally wiped him out." Ash said gazing down at his hurt Pokémon.

"Oh my gosh, that's terrible!" Amy said horrified as Nurse Joy took the electric mouse from Ash and put it onto a stretcher pushed by two Chansey.

"Well I'm shocked Ash, I was sure you wouldn't have caught a single Pokémon by the time you reached Viridian City." Gary said with a smirk. Ash gave him a blank look and then started to blush. Gary smirk grew into a sneering grin "You DID catch those Spearow didn't you? Or were you just too worn out to throw a little Pokeball at them?"

"NO! I was just worried about Pikachu so I wanted to get him to a doctor right away!" Ash growled.

"Of course you did Ash, Gary's just being a jerk. Come on; let's go to the waiting room okay? And you should probably call your mom so she knows you got here okay." Amy said putting her arm around his shoulders and leading him to the waiting room. She didn't notice Gary clenching his fists behind them.

*****

Almost 3 hour later, Gary had gone to bed and taken Socrates with him. Avion was in his ball, and Isis was resting on Amy's lap, eyes closed and breathing softly as Amy stroked her.

"Pikachu will be okay Ash, don't worry." Amy said trying to sound comforting.

"Yeah but, I was being so stupid, and it's my fault he's hurt at all!" Ash said staring at the floor. Amy knew he was trying not to cry.

"I'm not saying it's not your fault, because in all honesty it is, but you can't just continue to beat yourself up for it, what's done is done, so learn from it, and move on." Amy said looking intently at her friend.

"Well, if you say so" Ash said in a low voice.

"I know so, in fact I-" Amy started but was interrupted by a red-headed girl carrying a charred bicycle striding towards them. She dumped the bike in front of them and pointed at Ash, who seemed terrified.

"YOU!" she yelled, Amy had to admit she looked scary.

"Uh, uh, can't we talk about this?" Ash said holding his hands up in front of him with a shaky grin on his face.

"Ash, what did you do?" Amy said with a sigh.

"I'll tell you what he did! He STOLE my bike and DESTROYED it! So now he owes me another one!" the girl said in anger, eyes never leaving Ash's face.

"I don't have that kind of money!" Ash said and looked at Amy as if to ask for help.

"Sorry Ash, I can't help you with this." Amy said shaking her heads. Secretly she thought it was sort of entertaining.

"Well you'd better GET the money and GET me another bike!" the girl said clenching her fists.

Amy sighed and got up, moving Isis carefully to the chair she had been sitting on. "Hi, my name's Amy, I'm Ash's friend from Pallet Town, who are you?"

"Misty, hi!" her anger seemed to instantly evaporate as she smiled and shook hands with Amy.

"Okay, well, Ash NEVER has any money, trust me on this, so do think there's any other way for him to repay you...?" Amy said trying to look sympathetic with Misty.

"W-ell..." she glanced over at Ash who shrank back at her gaze. She shrugged "I don't know, but I'm pretty sure I'll think of something." she strode past Amy towards Ash "So kid, Ash right? What happened to your Pikachu?" there was an edge in her voice.

"It's still in intensive care, it was hurt really bad. It's been 3 hours..." Ash looked at the sign above the emergency room door. It was still red, meaning Pikachu was still being worked on.

"Oh... is it going to be alright?" Misty asked quietly. She sounded truly worried about Pikachu.

"I don't know, I hope so but-" Ash stopped talking as the red light went off. The doors opened and Nurse Joy wheeled out Pikachu on a stretcher. A light bulb was strapped to its head with wires coming off it.

"Pikachu!" Ash exclaimed as he ran over beside his Pokémon. Misty and Amy quickly followed.

"Your Pikachu will make a full recovery, but it needs to rest now." Nurse Joy said smiling as Ash stroked the head of the electric mouse.

"So, guess we have a happy ending." Amy said with relief.

Suddenly there was a blast and a hole was torn out of the ceiling. Smoke poured down from it and 2 dark figures emerged from it, a teenage boy with blue hair and a girl with long bright red hair. Between them was a Pokémon Amy recognised as a Meowth.

"It's not the ending just yet young lady." the boy said smirking. Amy narrowed her eyes at both the intruders.

"Who are you guys?" Ash said in anger.

"We are Team Rocket!" said the Meowth. Amy gasped, a talking Pokémon!

"I am Jessie" said the girl with a flourish.

"And I am James!" said the boy striking a pose.

"And stealing rare and strong Pokémon is our game!" all three of them said together.

"You're in the wrong place! This is a treatment center for weak and injured Pokémon!" Nurse Joy said sounding on the verge of panic.

"True, but there are probably some jewels among all the junk." Jessie said eyeing Isis who had run to Amy's side. Noticing this Amy picked up her Pokémon.

"We will NOT let you take these Pokémon!" Amy yelled.

"Fine, if you won't hand them over, we'll just fight you for them! Go Koffing!" James called, releasing the poison Pokémon.

"Ekans!" Jessie said as she released the snake Pokémon from its ball.

Isis looked at the Pokémon warily. "Erm, I would like to vote that we run." Amy said with a small giggle, returning Isis.

"SECONDED!" The others yelled and they ran off down the hall, the poison duo hot on their trial. Suddenly a tired looking figure came down the hall towards them.

"Hey, what's going on? I heard screaming and, WOAH!" Gary yelled as Amy went careening into him, followed by Ash, Misty and Nurse Joy. Pikachu's stretcher hit the wall and rebounded towards Ekans and Koffing.

"PIKACHU!" Ash yelled, jumping up and grabbing the stretcher just in time.

"What the heck going on?!" Gary asked eyes wide as Amy got off him and helped him up. She didn't like him, but she wasn't leaving him to the bad guys.

"I'll explain in a second, in here!" Amy yelled and they ran into the room, barring the door behind them. They found the walls filled with Pokeballs, presumably holding Pokémon for treatment. Joy ran to a computer and started emergency evacuation procedure Alpha, and began mass-sending Pokémon to the Pokémon center in Pewter City as Amy quickly filled Gary in on the past few minutes.

"Alright, now what?" Amy asked once the last of the Pokémon were sent and Gary had been filled in on what was happening. Team rocket was banging at the door.

"We fight of course!" Gary said pulling the ball that held Slasher the Raticate off his belt.

"Okay, when they come in here, Gary and I will hold them off while the rest of you get out of here and get help okay?" Amy told the others.

"Hey, why are you the ones staying?" Ash asked haughtily.

"Well Pikachu can't fight very well now can it? And well, I don't know if Misty has Pokémon so..."

"I have Pokémon, look, why don't I stay here and you both go," Misty said looking from Amy to Gary.

"No way am I running from a battle!" Gary said stubbornly.

The door burst in and Jessie and James stepped through it. "Tah-dah! Now hand over the Pokémon!" James said smirking.

"Never!" Ash said and picked up Pikachu, who opened its eyes and stared up at its trainer. "I'll never let you get Pikachu!"

"Silly boy! We only want rare and strong Pokémon, your pathetic rat there is neither" Jessie said with a sneer.

"That Eevee of yours qualifies though." James said smiling at Amy who glared back.

"Leave Amy... 's Pokémon alone!" Gary said running in front of Amy "GO SLASHER!" Gary yelled and threw his Pokeball, his Raticate appeared, ready to fight.

"Come on let's go!" Nurse Joy said and they ran out of the room, leaving Gary and Amy facing the now angry Team Rocket as Raticate tussled with Ekans and Koffing, putting up quite the fight, but it was still a two on one battle. Amy reached for Isis' Pokeball but Gary grabbed her wrist and shook his head.

"I've got this, you get out of here." he said and Amy stared at him.

"No way! I'm not leaving you... r Raticate out there to get totally pummelled!" Amy said pulling away.

"FINE!" Gary yelled shocking Amy to silence. "SLASHER CLEAR THE WAY!" Gary yelled at the rat Pokémon. Slasher darted out of the fray and launched itself at Jessie, and began gnawing at her hair.

"AIIIIIIII!!!!" Jessie screamed and started to run about, with James attempting to get the rat Pokémon off her head. Amy would have laughed if Gary hadn't at that moment grabbed her shoulders and pushed her through the door and out towards the lobby where the others were standing, arguing by the looks of it. Amy groaned, this wasn't the time!

Amy and Gary were running towards the others when Slasher suddenly flew through the air past them, a chunk of red hair still in its mouth.

"WHY YOU LITTLE!!!!" Amy whipped around as Gary returned his stunned Pokémon to its Pokeball. Jessie was standing there, looking like Godzilla on a bad hair day. Amy frowned slightly. This wasn't good.

Just then, Pikachu leapt between Amy and team Rocket, and let off a monster shock.

"NO PIKACHU NOT AGAIN! DONT YOU REMEMBER LAST TIIIIME!!!!!" Ash yelled but that didn't stop Pikachu.  
There was an explosion, everything went black.

*****

Amy opened her eyes slowly. She felt sore all over. She was surrounded by Ash, Gary and Misty.

"Where- where's Team Rocket? And Nurse Joy? Actually, how about we go for what happened first?" Amy asked with a frown. Ash looked relieved.

"She's okay." Ash said breathing a sigh.

"Team Rocket seems to have blasted off." Gary said with a smirk.

"Thanks to Pikachu!" Ash said with a laugh.

"Yeah..." Gary said with a sideways glace at Ash. They seemed to be still in the rubble of the building that once was the Pokémon center. After some more explaining it seemed that Pikachu hit a gas line, and the rest was history. Nurse Joy was talking with the police. No charges would be pressed against them, as they were just trying to defend themselves.

*****

Miracle of miracles, Gary`s car was spared from the blast, so as the sun was rising Amy hugged Ash goodbye, as she and Gary climbed into his car. Misty had decided to follow Ash until he paid her back. Amy thought it was good he now had a permanent travel partner.

As they drove off with the rising sun to their right, Amy actually smiled; maybe things would be alright with Gary after all.


	4. A Loss of Transportation

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 4~A Loss Of Transportation**

_((Joyful Note: I know I said I was only putting out 3 parts today, but I'm bored again so I figured, what the hell. Hope you enjoy it!))_

By lunchtime that day Gary and Amy were deep in Viridian forest. Amy had broken out some sandwiches and was munching on one as the trees sped by. There was one paved road through Viridian forest. It wound around a lot to avoid Pokémon habitats and took a while to get through. It was, however, the route that one was least likely to get lost traveling along. Despite this, many dirt paths have been worn away by hikers and motorists who insist on being trailblazers. It was on one of these 'roads less traveled' that they were traveling along now. Supposedly this was a shortcut, but the paths overlapped and turned back on themselves a lot so Amy was beginning to get under the impression they were getting steadily more lost as they went.

"Gary, I think we should just get back to the road, who knows where this comes out? And when?" Amy whined.

"We've been driving half an hour already! I am not turning around! I'm sure it comes out somewhere!"

"Yes! Somewhere! But where exactly? What if something happens, who knows how long it'll be till someone comes by who can help us?"

"I have a cell phone!"

"And just how are you planning on getting reception with all these trees? They're getting pretty thick..."

"WILL YOU JUST LET ME DRIVE?!"

It was at that moment a Caterpi ran out in front of the car.

"WATCH IT!" Amy yelled and grabbed the wheel, forcing the car away from the caterpillar Pokémon. Gary pushed her hand away and braked hard, but a tree was coming up pretty fast... Lucky for them they managed to stop barely an inch from the tree trunk. Both Gary and Amy were breathing hard and it took a moment for them to recompose themselves.

"That was close, but my baby made it through!" Gary laughed, rubbing the steering wheel fondly.

"Gary, did you just call this car your baby?" Amy asked raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, got a problem with that?" Gary shot her a glare.

"Um... no..." Amy shrugged "Well I suggest we get a move on."

"STOP RIGHT THERE!" a voice from the trees shouted.

"We weren't exactly going anywhere just yet." Amy said more to Gary then the voice. Gary smirked.

"I am Sameri! I believe you are trainers from Pallet Town yes?" a boy stepped out from behind a tree. He had a sameri's helmet and breast plates and was holding a sword out, pointing at Gary. Amy thought he seemed kind of cool but Gary laughed loudly.

"Go play solder somewhere else! We have a city to get to and gym badges to win!" Gary announced starting the engine.

"Gary!" Amy slapped his wrist. He looked shocked, Amy didn't mind "Yes, we're from Pallet town, what do you want?"

"I wish to challenge you to a Pokémon battle!" Sameri said sheathing his sword and drawing a Pokeball from his pocket.

"Well I still think you're a weird kid, but I never turn down a challenge! I'll take you on!" Gary said with a sneer, getting out of the car and pulling out his own Pokeball. Amy, interested, adjusted herself so she could see the battle without leaving the car.

"Right, we shall dual, and then once I beat you, I shall eliminate your girlfriend!"

"I AM NOT HIS GIRLFRIEND!" Amy yelled from her seat.

"I am dreadfully sorry Miss, in that case, perhaps if I win my battle against you, you will honour me with a date?" Sameri inquired with a smile. Amy blushed. Gary turned red for presumably a different reason.

"We don't have time for dates! We're on a tight schedule of catching, training, battling and..." Gary seemed to be trying to come up with something else.

"Gary, chill out okay? I don't plan to lose, but I think it's a nice offer anyway Sameri, although I'm not sure you're my type." Amy said with a smile that Sameri returned, if a bit sheepishly.

"Well, we'll see won't we? Now, to battle! Go Pinser!" Sameri called, throwing the ball in his hand. The bug Pokémon with spiked pinchers as horns atop its head looked fierce. Amy frowned, Pinser were rare, and strong, but there was little else she knew about them. She pulled out her Pokedex and looked up Pincer. After listening to the electronic voice she began devising a strategy as Gary released Slasher and began to fight. They seemed evenly matched.

It was obvious to Amy that Avion couldn't fight until his wing healed, so Isis would have to battle. From her Pokedex Amy knew now that although Pinser are strong, they're usually pretty slow and lacked many strong attacks, so Isis had a speed advantage, which Amy planned to use.

"Pinser, use Cut!"

"Slasher! Superfang!"

Tooth met horn with a crushing intensity and then both Pokémon were knocked backward. They went on for what seemed like ages before finally Pinser was left gasping for breathe. Slasher went in for a final quick attack and Pinser went down for the count. Sameri bowed his head and returned his Pokémon.

"I yield to you, you are truly a great warrior." Sameri said still with a bowed head.

"Well duh, I AM the grandson of the great Prof. Oak! I have greatness in my blood!" Gary said smugly. Amy rolled her eyes.

"Are you sure your Pinser is up for round 2?" Amy said concerned.

"No, but never fear, I have other Pokémon to fight with!" Sameri reassured her.

"Alright, well in that case-" Amy started but was interrupted by a loud cracking sound above her. She froze. It cracked again, and Amy slowly looked up. It appeared that the Caterpi had returned to watch the fray. And had brought friends. LOTS of friends. And they had all decided to sit on the large tree branch that obscured the sky above the car. And now the branch was breaking. The Caterpi were scattering away.

"AMY GET OUT OF THERE!" Gary yelled rushing at the car. Amy screamed and opened the car door. The branch fell. It all but crushed Amy's side of the vehicle. "AMY!" Gary yelled running over to the wreck and tried desperately to move the branch, Sameri ran over to help as well.

Amy popped up from behind the branch on the other side. "Um, guys, I'm okay!" Amy said smiling and waving. She had escaped in the nick of time.

"Thank goodness, are you sure you're unharmed?" Sameri asked jumping over the branch and taking Amy's hand.

"Really, I'm okay, no worries!" Amy laughed.

"NO WORRIES?!" Gary yelled. He had finally got a good look at the damage. It didn't look repairable... seeing as half of it had been obliterated. "MY PARENTS ARE GOING TO KILL ME!! AND HOW ARE WE GOING TO GET OUT OF HERE NOW?!"

"We walk." Amy said raising an eyebrow "Isn't that kind of obvious?"

"Well what about when it gets dark? We don't have any camping gear!" Gary persisted.

"Everything's a dark cloud with you isn't it?" Amy said brushing her hair from her face. The wind had picked up. They paused as it made the forest move, rustling through the leaves.

"Looks like more rain." Sameri said in observation.

Gary let out a long groan. "Perfect. Just perfect!" he leaned against his mutilated car grumbling.

"You are welcome to spend the night with me in my cabin and leave in the morning, I will show you quickest way out of the forest. I assure you that there will be camping equipment when you reach Pewter, which you should by tomorrow night if you leave early enough" Sameri offered with a bow.

"That sounds great, thank you!" Amy said cheerfully. Gary grunted in grudging agreement.

"Excellent! Would you like assistance with retrieving your belongings from your vehicle?" Sameri started towards the car but Gary stepped in front of him.

"No thanks, I got it." he said and turned around and began attempting to force open the trunk. Finding it jammed tight he kicked it, which only seemed to hurt his foot. Amy giggled, causing Gary to scowl.

"Should I-?" Sameri offered again and Gary stepped aside, not looking at him. Sameri called his Pinser, and with its Strength, the trunk was soon open. Gary grunted.

*

After much squabbling, Gary and Sameri were at last asleep. Amy sighed deeply and listened to the rain beating down on the roof. She was on the floor, wrapped in blankets, with Isis curled up beside her. There wasn't really anywhere comfortable for Avion to perch so he remained in his ball. They had moved all their clothing and food to the small cabin, and Amy was sure the car was slowly filling with water. She hoped that Gary didn't really intend to keep all the stuff he'd brought with him, which was quite a lot, because he wasn't going to be able to carry it. Amy didn't think she'd be keeping all the clothes she had brought. She figured she could keep 4 pairs of pants and 5 shirts. She'd still be weighed down but it would be something gone. They also had food to carry, and camping gear once they got some. But they would deal with it. Amy snuggled deeper under the blankets. It had been a long day.

*****

The next day was more or less uneventful, other then Gary catching a Weedle and naming it Sting. Amy was starting to see a theme in all the names that Gary was picking for his Pokémon. Sameri led them well, and just as the sun was setting Pewter City came into view.

"Thank god I thought my feet would fall off!" Amy said with relief. They hadn't stopped walking all day after all.

"Well we wouldn't have had to walk if the car hadn't been crushed!" Gary said glaring at Amy.

"You said that like it was my fault or something." Ay said narrowing her eyes.

"Well if I had just left before Sameri challenged me this wouldn't have happened! We would have been here yesterday!"

"Look, fine, it's my fault, alright? Great." Amy said and turned away from Gary who seemed shocked that she had agreed, even though she only did it to end the argument. "Sameri, thank you for your help, we never would have made it out without you!" Amy said and gave him a friendly hug.

"You are very welcome Miss! Now remember, when you return to Viridian Forest, you owe me a battle!" Sameri said smirking. Amy laughed.

"Wouldn't miss it!" she said happily. Gary had his arms crossed staring fixatedly at the town below them.

"Well, I must now return to my cabin, and await the other Pallet travellers!"

"Um, if you see Ash, he wears a red and white baseball cap and has black hair, has a Pikachu and is probably travelling with a redhead named Misty? Could you tell him Amy said hi?" Amy asked.

"Certainly! I shall bare your greetings! Farewell!" Sameri said and then returned to the trees. Amy smiled and starting walking down the hill, Gary beside her. Time to find the Pokémon center, and tomorrow, their first Pokémon gym battles. Amy couldn't wait.

_((Joyful Note: Okay. I think this was the end of my anime plot point episodes for a while and then I focus more on the video game aspects... mind you I could be wrong. Also, bare in mind I wrote this during the time before I learned what a Mary Sue was and learned to hate them so for a long while Amy is going to get crushed on a lot. But this is going to pass I assure you, in time))_


	5. Problems In Pewter

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 5~Problems in Pewter**

_((Joyful Note: What, another one? I'm on a role of editing. Yay. Also, I never noticed until I got that review, but Amy is pretty accident prone... huh. I wonder if that keeps up in later parts))_

After spending the night in the Pokémon center, Amy and Gary were heading for the Pewter gym. Amy was checking the guidebook for maps of Pewter to find it.

"Hey Gary, they have a museum here, its pretty famous apparently, we have to check that out!" Amy said pointing it out on the map.

"We're here to battle not to look at some old bones!" Gary said scowling.

"I didn't say now, it can wait till after the gym battles but if we're going across the country I want to see the sites! What's the point otherwise?" Amy said putting away the book and crossing her arms.

"The point is to get stronger! The point is to win and become the best! What do you mean what's the point?!" Gary snapped throwing his hands into the air and staring at Amy. When she didn't respond he hmphed and looked away, crossing his arms as well. Amy sighed.

"Look, if you don't want to come, you don't have to, but I am. Sorry Gary." Amy said with a shrug. Then she smiled as the gym came into view. "Hey Gary..."

"What?" Gary said giving her a sideways glance.

"First one to the gym is the first one to get a badge." she grinned and raced away.

"HEY!" Gary yelled and ran after her. They ran down the street, dodging pedestrians, fast and Amy was Gary was catching up.

"No pant way pant are pant you pant pant BEATING ME!" Gary said breathing hard as he gained on her.

"Wanna bet?" Amy laughed as she skated around a woman pushing a baby carriage and slammed head on into a guy with spiked black hair, squinty eyes and a green vest. Both of them fell to the ground.

"Ha! I'm going to win now!" Gary yelled trying to run past her but Amy stuck out her foot and tripped him, sending him careening over.

"What the-? AMY! YOU DID THAT ON PURPOSE!" Gary yelled trying to get back up.

"Yeah, so?" Amy said shrugging and getting to her feet. She offered the guy she had knocked down a hand. "Sorry about that, can I help you up?" she said with a small smile.

The boy looked up and her and broke out into a huge grin and took her hand in both his own "Help me up? Of course you can help me up! And while you're at it, maybe you could help me fill the hole in my heart!"

Amy stared at him. "Excuse me?"

Gary's eyes flashed and he grabbed Amy's other hand and pulled her away from the guy who was still on the ground. "Come on Amy, we have gym battles to win!" Gary said starting to march off. The guy got up on his feet and laughed. Gary glared back "What's so funny?"

"Oh, I'm the leader of the gym, so I don't think you'll be able to battle very well without me... whoa that reminds me! I have to get to the museum!" he said looking suddenly embarrassed.

"Why? What's wrong at the museum?" Amy asked cocking her head to one side in curiosity.

"Nothing, but I'm supposed to open the new exhibit of moon stones! I'm late!" the man said before running off. Gary and Amy watched him go a moment before Gary started going after him.

"Where are you going?" Amy ran up and grabbed Gary's shoulder.

"To see the moon stones! Have you got any idea how rare those are? You wanted to see the museum didn't you?" Gary said with a smirk before shaking Amy's hand and running off again.

"YES BUT I DONT SEE WHAT'S SO GREAT ABOUT-" Amy yelled after him. Seeing that he wasn't slowing down Amy sighed "moon stones. Okay whatever" she said as she ran after him.

*****

Not all too long later they had gotten into the Pewter museum and were in the crowd around the new museum exhibit entrance. The gym leader was standing next to the museum curator. She was talking about how all the donators to the museum had done their part and at last a new exhibit could be opened. She then turned over her microphone to the gym leader who she introduced as Brock.

"Well lovely ladies and gentlemen, I just want to say what an honour it is to be the one to present this exhibit to you. I was on the team that went up to Mount Moon to get these moonstones, and I hope you'll enjoy them! So... enjoy!" Brock cut the tape in front of the new moonstone room and the crowd excitedly filed inside. Oohs and aahs filled the air as the people viewed the sparkling rocks.

"So, you came to check out the moonstones too? What's your name by the way?" Brock said spying Amy. Gary had run off with the crowd.

"Oh, yeah, they're really beautiful. My name's Amy, and my... my travel partner is Gary." Amy nodded towards Gary who was looking at the stones with great interest.

"Yeah, I know they're beautiful. They're heavy too though, for their size. I'll show you, here," Brock went over to a case and pulled out a key from his pocket. He opened the case and took out a small moonstone from the display and handed it to Amy. It was only the size of her palm but it must have weighed 5 pounds.

"Wow, you're right, that is heavy." Amy said weighing it in her hand "You went to Mount Moon to get these right? How'd you get them all down, there's a lot here."

Brock laughed "Well I didn't do it alone, and my Pokémon helped."

"Oh really? What kind of Pokémon do you have?" Amy asked handing Brock back the moonstone.

"You'll see when we battle won't you, and you can keep this," Brock said handing it back to her.

"But, its the museum's..." Amy said hesitating to take it from him.

"Yes, but I'm allowed to take a few for myself too, since I found them all, you may need it some time." Brock said taking Amy's hand and placing the stone in it.

"Well, okay then, thank you!" Amy said smiling as she slipped it into her pocket.

"Right, but, don't tell anyone about this, or they'll all want one, okay?" Brock said smiling and Amy nodded.

"I won't, this is really nice of you," Amy smiled.

"Well its not every day I get to meet a girl as pretty as you."

Amy blushed hard "Um..."

"So Amy, and Brock was it? You ready to battle yet?" Gary said striding up with his hands in his pockets.

"Oh, sure, let's just head back to the gym, but I have to make a stop at home first" Brock said smiling and heading out the door. Amy nodded and followed.

"I'll be out in a sec okay?" Gary said looking at something Amy couldn't see behind the doorframe. Shrugging, she hurried after Brock. About 30 seconds later Gary ran up behind them and fell into stride. He seemed to be thinking about something.

"What's up?" Amy asked him.

"I just... never mind, it fine." Gary said and grinned awkwardly before looking away.

_'Alright then...'_ Amy thought to herself and shrugged.

*****

Brock stopped in front of a 2 story house next to a construction site. "You can come in if you want, just don't expect too much, I haven't had a chance to clean today." Brock said opening the front door. He was immediately dog piled by 10 little kids.

"BROCK'S HOME!"

"YAY!"

"SUSIE TOOK MY TEDDY BEAR MAKE HER GIVE IT BACK!"

"IT WAS MY BEAR TO START WITH! YOU STOLE IT MONTHS AGO!"

"BWOK I'M HUNGWEY!!!"

"Guys, guys settle down! I'd like you to meet Gary and Amy, they're going to be next opponents at the gym, but first, I didn't forget it was spaghetti day!" Brock said smiling and the kids all cheered. "Care to stay for lunch?" Brock said and the kids ran for the kitchen.

"Sure, I love spaghetti!" Amy said and followed Brock to the kitchen, with Gary grumbling about wasting time behind her. The pasta was amazing, and Amy took 2nd and 3rd helpings of it.

"Wow, Brock you are an amazing cook, right Avion?" Amy said happily to her Spearow, who was perched on her shoulder and was eating the noodles as well. Isis and Socrates were eating from bowls on the floor. Slasher and Sting were sampling some of Brock's Pokémon food for bug and rodent Pokémon. They seemed to be enjoying it.

"Spearow!" Avion said waving its wings. Amy noticed the tiny Pokémon was raising its bound wing to the same level as the free one.

"Hey Avion... I think your wing's healed!" Amy said and took the Pokémon in her hands, carefully unwrapping the bandages. The bird Pokémon flexed its wings and flapped them. He darted into the air and started zooming around the room, squawking happily, to the happy shouts and laughter of the kids around the table. Gary wasn't paying much attention it seemed though. At last however, they finished their meal and were putting away the dishes.

"Well, thanks Brock, that was great, so are we ready for that gym battle now? I can't wait to see if you battle as well as you cook!" Amy said with a laugh.

"He'd better, or it won't be any fun at all!" Gary said with a smirk and standing.

"Yay! Can we watch Brock? Can we please?"

"Yeah can we pleeeeeeease?" Brock's sibling stared up at him with puppy-dog expressions on their faces.

"Well... only if it's alright with the challengers." Brock said glancing at Amy and Gary.

"Oh sure why not?" Amy said as they turned their puppy-dog eyes on her.

"Sure, why not? If I'm going to beat you, why not have an audience?" Gary said shrugging.

"YAY!" Brock's siblings yelled in unison.

*****

A while later they had at last all trooped to the gym. Amy had never seen a gym before, and was amazed by how big it was to start with. She took notice as well to how well themed it all was. All the training equipment and terrain was just right for Brock's rock Pokémon. That gave him an advantage of course, but Amy was up for a challenge. Gary seemed geared up too, if a little distracted, although Amy didn't know why. She wasn't totally sure if she cared either.

"So, which of you am I battling first?" Brock asked taking his place across the gym floor from them.

"Ladies first!" Amy said pushing Gary aside and pulling out Isis' Pokeball.

"You're no lady, I'll soften him up for ya though! I can take a challenge!" Gary said pushing back and pulling out Socrates' ball.

"ROCK PAPER SCISSORS!" Amy yelled and they did. Amy got rock, Gary got scissors.

"No fair! You cheated!" Gary snapped crossing his arms.

"I did not!"

"You were a second faster then me!"

"That would mean YOU cheated idiot!"

"What? No I..." Gary seemed to be thinking about it.

"If I was faster then you could of seen what I was doing and could have thrown the right sign to stop me." Amy explained shaking her head in disbelief.

"Well... then... oh just battle!" Gary said throwing his hands in the air and stomping over to the sidelines.

"Thank you, I will." Amy said and then turned to face Brock. The judge stood at the halfway point on the field.

"This will be a one on one Pokémon battle." the judge announced "There will be no time limit. GO!" he shouted and Brock threw his ball.

"GEODUDE! GO!"

"ISIS! LET'S WIN THIS!" Amy threw her ball as well. The boulder and fox Pokémon faced each other on the arena.

"Isis! Quick Attack!" Amy shouted. Her Pokémon leapt at Geodude, crashing into it. Geodude flew back a bit, but otherwise appeared unphased. Isis on the other hand looked dazed.

_'Oh right, it's a rock Pokémon, physical attacks don't have much effect... so now what do I do?'_ Amy thought to herself as her Eevee got to its feet.

"Geodude! Rock Throw!" Brock yelled. Geodude grabbed the nearest rock on the field (which was made especially to accommodate rock types) and threw it at Isis.

"DODGE IT!" Amy called out, and Isis darted away just in time.

"Um... Agility!" Amy yelled recalling the attack. Eevee began moving quickly about the gym, avoiding Geodude's rocks as it threw them. Amy wished she had studied more of Isis' attacks. She also wished this wasn't her first Pokémon battle. She should have trained beforehand! Now she was going to be humiliated. She thought hard about how she was going to get out of this.

"Geodude! Sandstorm!" Brock's voice rang out. Geodude started to spin wildly, stirring up the sand and silt from the crushed rocks around itself until a great sandstorm was blowing about.

"Isis!" Amy coughed out, shielding her eyes from the torrent.

"Now, tackle attack!" Brock called, and although she couldn't see it, Amy could hear Isis cry out in pain.

"Tackle again!"

"DEFENSE CURL!" Amy shouted and ended up with a mouthful of sand. She spat it out.

"Are you guys okay? I can't see anything!" Gary shouted from somewhere to Amy's right, above the cheers of Brock's brothers and sisters. Amy didn't hear another cry, so she hoped her defence curl had worked.

"Now... quick attack again!" Amy yelled, now sure what else to do. To her shock she heard Geodude cry in pain. The sandstorm let up, and Geodude was nursing quite the bruise while Isis was running around the perimeter of the field. Amy looked closer and saw Isis wasn't running but ROLLING. Like a ball. Shocked, Amy pulled out her Pokedex and aimed it at Isis.

"Roll Out. A Normal move that causes heavy damage when combined with Defence Curl and causes more damage each time it hits the target" the Pokedex stated.

"ALRIGHT!" Amy shrieked grinning widely. "ISIS! ROLL OUT! HIT GEODUDE AGAIN!"

"GEODUDE GET OUT OF THE WAY!" Brock yelled.

"YEAH GET OUT OF THE WAY GEODUDE!" the kids screamed. Geodude tried to avoid her, but Isis still managed to bash its arm, sending the rock Pokémon spinning like a top only to crash into a nearby boulder.

"COME ON! ONE MORE TIME!" Amy cried, Brock looked shocked.

"Geodude NO!" Brock yelled and returned his Pokémon. Isis kept going and slammed into the rock that had been behind Geodude, sending it into a thousand pieces.

"Oh my gosh" Amy whispered "RETURN!" she yelled and red light enveloped the Eevee, sending it back to its ball. Amy sank to her knees. "That could have been Geodude." she said quietly.

"Yes. But it wasn't. I forfeited, so you get the badge. You have to learn to judge how bad your blow will hurt the other Pokémon though, otherwise you could cause a lot of unnecessary pain." Brock said approaching Amy and holding out the badge.

"Thanks, I will." Amy said nodding numbly as she took it and stared at the gleaming grey metal.

"Hey, fine, if you want to give up then just hand her the badge, now let's you and me fight!" Gary said smirking as he took Amy's place. Amy sat on the sideline bench and dug into her bag. She pulled out a red velvet covered box. Opening it carefully she pinned the badge to the soft black silk inside. She stared at it in there for a moment, her eyes sad, then closed the box and pushed it deep inside her bag again. "Alright let's go!" Gary shouted. The judge repeated his words from the previous match and Gary threw his ball containing Socrates onto the field. The little fox Pokémon scratched its ear and then twitched it tail and ears, growling, ready to go at it.

Brock smirked. "ONIX GO!" he shouted and an enormous snake made of rocks erupted from its Pokeball onto the field.

"What the... HEY YOU ONLY USED GEODUDE ON HER!" Gary yelled pointing at Amy.

Amy smirked "I thought you could take a challenge? Here's a challenge, go for it." Amy said eyes bright.

"Well, I, erm..." Gary looked a little freaked out by the enormous Pokémon in front of him.

"Well you didn't think I'd fight with Geodude when it's wiped out like it is did you?" Brock said raising an eyebrow.

Gary growled. "Okay let's do this! Socrates! Roll Out!" Gary yelled. Socrates looked at Gary in confusion."I said Roll Out! If Isis could do it you can too, now do it!" Gary said in frustration.

"Gary! Isis just learned how to use that attack during the battle! Socrates didn't see her, so he wouldn't know!" Amy shouted from the sidelines.

"Well then what am I supposed to do!" Gary yelled back angrily.

"Well... what did I do?" Amy asked raising her eyebrows ad smiling.

"What? I don't know..." Gary said trying to remember.

"ONIX BIND!" Brock yelled. The giant Pokémon curled its tail around Socrates and started to squeeze. The fox Pokémon started squealing loudly. Gary just stared, unsure what to do. Suddenly Socrates' squealing hit a pitch so high that everyone had to cover their ears. Onix roared and let go to bury its head in the sand. Socrates dropped to the ground, hurt, but not too badly.

"What was THAT?!" Gary groaned pulling his fingers from his ears and massaging his temples.

"I know what that was, it was screech, and a loud one, ow!" Amy explained, ears still ringing.

"Yeah okay but that's a defensive move isn't it? That can't help me win!" Gary said clenching his fists still trying to think. Onix pulled its head out of the sand and stared at Socrates, shocked that such a little thing could have such a loud voice.

"ONIX DIG!" Brock yelled and Onix nodded, punching headfirst down into the ground.

"Dang, it could come up anywhere!" Gary muttered, staring around the arena. "Use agility!" Gary shouted. His Pokémon cocked its head and then went scampering about the arena.

_'Well that's a moving target anyway, but I don't think it'll be much help, Onix is just too big!_' Amy thought as Socrates continued to dart about.

"NOW!" Brock yelled and Onix drove upward, directly beneath its opponent, sending the fox Pokémon into the air.

"QUICK! RUN DOWN ITS BACK!" Gary shouted. Socrates nodded and landed on Onix's head, ran down it, and hopped onto the ground.

"So you prevented the ground impact, but you're still outmatched." Brock said and Onix swept its tail, bashing Socrates into the wall. He slid to the ground, and fainted.

"No way." Gary said as the judge announced that Eevee was unable to battle. Gary let out a scream of frustration and returned his Pokémon in disgust.

"You fought well, you should be proud of yourself!' Brock said solemnly.

"YEAH BUT I DIDN'T WIN!" Gary yelled and started to head for the door.

"Oh boy." Amy said shaking her head and following him. She quickly caught up just as he left the building and grabbed his shoulder. "Gary, its okay. So you lost one, big deal. We could stay here a bit, train harder, and then you can come back and have a re-match." Amy said quietly. Gary's shoulders stiffened.

"Who needs this gym's badge anyway? I bet there are tons of gyms to fight! I can..."

"Take the easy way out? So you need to work at it." Amy said moving in front of Gary to face him. "But I know you can do it. Okay?" Amy said, still in a quiet voice.

Gary stared at her a moment. Then he scowled. "That's easy for you to say! You got the badge!"

"Its like you said, he went easy on me. I shouldn't have let him do that for me and not for you. But I did. It's getting dark, so can we just get something to eat, get some sleep, and tomorrow we can figure something out. We'll put together a killer strategy, and we can teach Socrates Roll Out. How's that sound?" Amy said smiling a bit.

Gary gave her a suspicious look "Why are you being so nice all of a sudden?"

Amy blinked in surprise. "I don't know." she smirked. "Maybe I thought you were too pathetic right now to needle."

"Pathetic? I'M pathetic? What about YOU? YOU may have a gym badge but Brock went easy on you! Guess he didn't think you could take the heat!" Gary said crossing his arms.

Amy smiled "Perhaps. But I still got a badge, easy or no." she laughed.

"Well at least when I beat him I'll have accomplished something! Unlike you who took the EASY way out!" Gary said scowling.

"THERE'S the arrogant jerk I know and poke fun at! Let's go eat. I noticed a pizzeria on the way here from Brock's house." Amy said heading down the walkway to the street.

Gary blinked. "Um, okay." he said following. He must have noticed the bulge in Amy's pocket. "What's in your pocket?" Gary asked pointing to the pocket that held the moonstone.

"Oh, Brock, erm, gave me a moonstone from the exhibit." Amy said blushing and taking it out to show him.

"Hey no fair! Like you could ever catch a Pokémon that would need one of these things!" Gary said snatching it from her.

"Hey give that back!" Amy yelled grabbing for it.

"You got a gym badge!"

"That doesn't mean you can have my moonstone you jerk!" Amy yelled grabbing at it again, this time succeeding in getting hold of it.

"Fine! Then I'll just get my own!" Gary said letting go of it and Amy fell over on her behind.

"Fine! You do that!" Amy groaned in exasperation as she got to her feet.

"I will." Gary said narrowing his eyes.

*****

Later after pizza Amy was sleeping in her bed in their room in the Pokémon center. Amy had claimed top bunk yet again, although Gary didn't complain this time, which was odd. Amy woke up only a half hour after falling asleep to see Gary on the floor dressing in the shadows.

"What are you doing?" Amy asked still half-asleep.

Gary looked up startled. "I'm just... going to get a drink and I don't want the whole center to see my pjs!" Gary said in annoyance, pulling on his shoes and opening the door.

"Okay.." Amy said and yawned, pretending to go back to sleep, but really watched as Gary closed the door. The moment he did she hurried down the ladder, returning the sleeping forms of Isis and Avion as she did so. She looked at Gary's bed. Socrates was gone. If Gary was getting a drink he wouldn't have taken his Pokémon with him. Pulling on her shoes and not bothering to change out of her pjs she edged open the door just as Gary turned the corner at the end of the hall. She ran as quietly as possible after him, poking her head around the corner and watching him head into the lobby and then out the front door.

"Water? I don't think so" Amy muttered and ran across the lobby and out the door.

She shadowed Gary as he jogged down the street for a while until he turned down alley. Amy went down after him, but when she reached the other side she saw the road leading to Brock's house.

_  
'He didn't go looking for a battle NOW did he?'_ Amy thought confused as she headed for Brock's, just in case. She went up to the dark house hesitantly, wondering if she should try to knock. She was afraid she might wake someone up of she was wrong. Taking a deep breath she rose her hand to knock when suddenly the door opened and Brock ran out and crash into her, sending them both to the ground.

"Who, what? Amy! What are you doing here?!" Brock said getting off of Amy. Amy got to her feet as well.

"I thought Gary came here, he left the Pokémon center and I followed him up to this street but then lost track of him." Amy explained.

"Well he's not here, and I have to get to the museum right away!" Brock said running up to the other end of the street where the museum was.

"Why?" Amy asked sprinting over and running beside him.

"Its being robbed, I just got a call from Officer Jenny, she thought I should know since the silent alarm was tripped in the moon stone exhibit."

Amy flashbacked to Gary saying he'd get his own moonstone. '_No way... he wouldn't..._' Amy said her face going white.

They quickly reached the museum and Brock unlocked the front door. The window beside it had been opened. Amy frowned. She didn't like this one bit. They hurried inside, quietly as they could, heard shuffling in the Moonstone display room. They crept up to the light streaming out of it and peered around the corner, the room was lit.

Gary was standing in the middle of the room, Slasher by his side. One of the cases had been broken, and Gary was holding a stone in his hand.

_((Joyful Note: Oh snap Gary! Well this is DEFINATELY the last today. Goodnight, I hope you like it so far. Lord knows I'd forgotten how annoying Amy could be. But she was meant to fit into the Pokemon world, so she was bound to be annoying on some level. Oh well))_


	6. Explanations and Battles

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 6~Explainations and Battles**

_((Joyful Note: I'm not really in much of a mood to edit, so I think we'll probably only get one chapter out tonight. I hope nobody is heartbroken by this. HA! As if))_

"Gary, you, how could-" Amy stuttered, eyes wide. Gary started and turned to face her, looking scared.

"Amy? W-what're you doing here?" he asked warily.

"We could ask you the same question." Brock said crossing his arms and gazing pointedly at the moonstone in Gary's hand. Gary glanced at where he was looking and looked a bit freaked out suddenly.

"What, you don't think that I... No! It wasn't me I swear!" Gary said frantically waving his hands in front of him.

"Then who was it?" Amy asked drilling a hole in him with her eyes.

"It was these two guys, well I guy and a girl, I saw them, I'm sure there's camera footage, there has to be! They just left but-" Gary was talking too fast and Amy held up her hand and glared at him until he stopped.

"I think you should start at the beginning." Amy said running her tongue along her teeth.

"Yeah, well, okay, we were here this morning right? And I heard these 2 teenagers, a blond girl and some guy with sort of darkish green hair, talking about coming back here tonight at midnight to steal the moonstones or something. I didn't say anything cause I assumed they must be joking, or I heard them wrong, but I was sort of worried anyway so I came over tonight, just to check. The window was open, so I crawled through and found the two of them in this room, so I made sure to trip the alarm and then walked in on them with Slasher. They already had a bunch of the moonstones in bags, so I fought them until they set of a smoke ball and got away. They dropped a couple moonstones on the way out so I was putting them back, that's why I'm holding one. I swear, that's the whole truth! You have to believe me!" Gary pleaded, looking from Brock to Amy and back again.

"Before you said you were going to get your own moonstone..."

"When we got to Mount Moon! I'd never STEAL one! Honestly, do you seriously think I'd do that?!" Gary asked angrily.

Amy sighed. "I suppose not.

Brock nodded. "Then we'd better get Officer Jenny, I'm no detective so she'll be better at tracking these guys down then I would be. Anyway, Gary, you did save a lot of moonstones. I'll just pull up security on the rest of them."

Gary looked relieved, then smirked. "Yeah, I DID save them didn't I?" Gary said puffing out his chest.

"But you might have saved them all if you had told someone, why didn't you even tell me?" Amy asked cocking her head slightly to one side.

"Erm..." he shuffled his feet "I was going to but, I wanted to wait till we were alone, and by that point you had won a badge and I... didn't... so I was mad."

Amy rolled her eyes "Fine. I'll give you that. So, how about we get back to the Pokémon center?"

"Yeah, you two head back, I'll clean up here... and greet Officer Jenny" Brock said with a goofy grin.

*****

The next day Gary trained non-stop, and Amy was his coach, and opponent. While the police continued their investigation and got nowhere, Socrates mastered Roll Out with Isis demonstrating, (although Isis still hit a lot harder then him) and they work through several strategies, eventually settling on a plan of action. Amy had discovered Gary could be almost tolerable when he had to work on something, even if when he succeeded somewhere he turned arrogant and jerky again until his next screw up.

It wasn't just Socrates training either, all the Pokémon were getting a workout. Isis got her Roll Outs better aimed, and Amy was working on measuring how much damage they caused as they hit. Avion could fly fast, but he went sort of wildly and often went off course, so Amy was spending time with him working on that. Amy was starting to like the high speed of her Pokémon a lot. She had always prided herself in having the fastest feet in Pallet, so she liked things fast paced. Gary leaned on power though, so he worked Slasher, Socrates and Sting so they could hit as hard as possible.

At last, Gary felt he was strong enough to take on Brock the next day. Amy was glad, as she was getting kinda bored with Pewter, there wasn't a lot to do as it was sort of a small city. So on the morning of their 3rd day there, Gary marched towards the gym, Socrates at his side. Amy walked just behind him, yawning. They got there just before Brock. They all exchanged nods and went inside. Once Brock and Gary had taken their places and Amy had settled on the sidelines, Brock released Geodude onto the field.

"Wait!" Gary said holding up his hand.

"What?" Brock asked confused.

"I want to fight Onix."

About 10 minutes later Onix and Socrates were both breathing hard. Socrates had used Screech after screech to lower Onix's defences, and had hit a few directs with Roll Out. Onix had struck a couple good blows too, so by this point they were both on the ropes. Amy was impressed and Brock seemed impressed as well. Gary seemed to be really pushing himself.

"I have to admit, this may be the most exciting battle I've had in a long time, but now its time to end it." Brock announced "Onix! IRON TAIL!" Onix's tail began to glow brightly as it swung towards Socrates. Amy gasped, they hadn't planned on this.

"Tell him to dodge Gary!" Amy shouted from the sidelines. Socrates looked like he was about to comply but Gary shook his head.

"Charge it straight on Socrates!" Gary yelled. Amy's eyes bulged as Socrates launch himself loyally at that massive tail.

_'Gary you had better know what you're doing..._' Amy though fearfully. She didn't want to see an Eevee smear across the floor.

"Now jump!" Gary yelled. The fox Pokémon jumped, flying now at Onix's head. Onix glared, and followed him with its tail. "DIVE!" Gary shouted at his Pokémon. Socrates pulled its legs towards his body and aimed downward, just as the tail passed through the air he was just occupying.

"NO! ONIX STOP!" Brock screamed but Onix's momentum was too great and the Iron Tail hit the giant rock Pokémon straight in the face. It swayed, then keeled over. Socrates darted away just in time.

"Onix is unable to battle! The match and gym badge go to Gary Oak!" the judge called.

"YEAH THAT'S RIGHT!" Gary cheered throwing his fist in the air, and doing a victory dance. Amy thought it was extremely embarrassing and buried her face in her hands while Socrates joined in with the dancing.

*****

Once Gary had placed his badge safely in his badge case and they had acquired 2 sleeping bags, a camping stove, and had restocked on food and water, they saddled themselves up and prepared to hit the road. After saying goodbye to Brock of course. They were just out of site of Pewter when a pink ball of fluff darted in front of them and dived into a bush.

"What was that?" Amy said in surprise.

"I don't know, but it was pink." Gary said blinking.

"Well I saw THAT." Amy sighed rolling her eyes as she approached the bush. As she did the puff ball sprang out and tackled her to the ground! "Oof, hey what the-?" Amy groaned sitting as the puff ball started going through her bag she had just dropped. Gary stopped laughing long enough to pull the bag away from the puff ball, which Amy recognised now as a Jigglypuff.

"AAAAAAIIIIII!!!!" Amy squealed grabbing the pink Pokémon and hugging it tightly. "I LOVE Jigglypuff!"

"Well let it breathe!" Gary snapped and Amy calmed down and loosened her grip. The Jigglypuff stared up at her with huge blue eyes. Usually their eyes are green, so the blue eyes made Amy want it even more. Suddenly the Jigglypuff's stomach growled and it clutched it and looked at Amy with sad eyes.

"Oooh... you're hungry? Sure you can have some of our food!" Amy said smiling and the Jigglypuff looked happy too.

"What? We can't break for lunch now! We only just started! We-" Amy cut off Gary's protest.

"Just an apple or something, stop being so stingy!" Amy scolded fishing the red fruit from her own bag and handing it to Jigglypuff who quickly ate it and made a satisfied sound.

"Better?" Amy asked and Jigglypuff smiled and nodded.

"Okay can we go now?" Gary asked impatiently. Amy nodded and stood.

"Okay, hey Jigglypuff, you want to come with us... more specifically with me?" Amy asked and the Jigglypuff gazed at her moment with its huge blue eyes and cocked its whole body to one side.

"You know, would you let me be your trainer?" Amy asked and Gary stared at her.

"You don't ASK a Pokémon if you can be its trainer! What kind of trainer ARE you anyway? You're supposed to battle them, then catch them! How are you..." he trailed off as the pink Pokémon squealed and jumped into Amy's arms.

Amy stuck her tongue out at Gary "How could you even think of battling such a sweet thing?" she asked cuddling the Pokémon to her chest. "From now on, you will be Harmony!" Amy said with a smile. Harmony looked happy with her new name.

"So can we go NOW?" Gary asked again and Amy nodded. They began walking along again, Jigglypuff still in Amy's arms. Gary's eyes suddenly lit up. "Hey, now you have a Pokémon you can use your moonstone on!"

Amy looked shocked "Evolve Harmony? You're crazy! Then how could I hold her like this?" Amy asked snuggling Harmony. Gary rolled his eyes.

"Then what ARE you going to use your moonstone on?" he asked.

"I'll think of something." Amy said with a smirk as they started towards the mountain rising in front of them.

*****

About midday they stopped for lunch and were soon on the road again. At last they were at the base of the mountain.

"Hey Gary, exactly how do we plan on getting over this thing?" Amy asked looking up at the steep slope of it. Harmony had been put in her ball at lunch.

"There's supposed to be a tunnel around here somewhere." Gary said starting to walk around the perimeter. Amy raised an eyebrow and started to go through her guild book.

"I don't see anything in here about a tunnel." Amy said looking at Gary sceptically.

"Well, Brock said that's where he got the moonstones from! So it has to be around here somewhere!" Gary growled walking faster.

"Right." Amy said shaking her head and putting the book away.

"Hey! Stop! You can't come in here with those machines! Do you have any idea of the damage you could do to the Pokémon in these caves? Cut it oooooow!!!" a voice was heard through a small grove of trees. Amy and Gary looked at each other and started running towards it.

"Like we care about a bunch of weak Pokémon! Come on Biff, we have work to do!" a girl's voice said.

"IT'S BUTCH! BUTCH!" a gravelly male voice was heard. An engine roared, then grew fainter, and then there was silence, punctured by whimpers from the first guy they heard. Stumbling into a clearing beside an opening in the mountain. On the ground was a nerdy looking man in a white lab coat with glasses, looking considerably beat up.

"Oh my gosh are you okay?" Amy gasped running over to the man on the ground.

"Hey Amy, those guys we heard, they sounded like the guys who robbed the museum!" Gary said coming over as well.

"The museum? In Pewter? What were they stealing?" the man asked sitting up rubbing his head.

"Moonstones. I think they probably came here for more." Gary said staring into the dark cave.

"Oh no! They can't take the moonstones! I advised Brock from Pewter gym against it, but he took some anyway. But at least he left plenty for the Pokémon here, they get angry when people take the moonstones. I doubt these people will leave any at all! But how can I stop them when I can barely crawl? Noble travelers I beg your kind assistance, for the crimes being committed deserve no forgiveness! The Clefairy here worship the moonstone you see, without it they become sad as can be." the man had broken into rhyme, causing Amy and Gary to stare at him.

"Huh, looks like they bopped him harder then I thought." Gary said crossing his arms and cocking his head to one side.

"Who are you anyway?" Amy asked the man. His eyes flashed and he jumped up.

"I am Seymour! Seymour the scientist! I study the moonstones, and Pokémon in this region! I have degrees in Pokémon physiology, psychology, geology, and poetry!" he said drawing himself to full height. Amy blinked.

"Poetry?" Amy said, not believing this.

"Of course fair maid, now our plan must be laid, to stop these hoodlums in their tracks, but first, does anyone want snacks?" Seymour asked pulling a small cloth bag from his coat and producing cookies from it.

"I don't think we exactly have time for that." Amy said still not believing this.

"Of course! Our time now is at hand, so let's go forth, and save this land!" Seymour said and started to head for the cave. He promptly tripped over a rock and fell to the ground.

"Yeah, I think we'd be better off if you stayed out here." Gary said stepping over the scientist on the ground and heading for the cave.

"We need a guild though Gary! And who better then a guy who travels in these caves all the time?" Amy said after looking at Seymour's saddened expression.

Gary's eye twitched but he shrugged and stepped aside "Fine, lead on." he said. Seymour smiled and scrambled to his feet, fell over again, then finally got up and headed into the cave.

_  
'At this rate, they'll have stolen every moonstone in the mountain before we reach them.'_ Amy thought as she entered behind Seymour and Gary.

*****

Soon, they heard drilling sounds echoing through the cave, growing louder as they approached. Paras and Sandshrew cowered all over the place, but Amy had yet to see a Clefairy. Gary looked longingly at the Sandshrew but didn't go after them, at least not just yet. Suddenly the drilling stopped and arguing could be heard.

"Cassidy! What'cha stop for?" Butch was yelling as they poked their heads around the corner to see the green haired boy looking up at the blond girl who was driving a huge drilling machine that seemed to be going straight down into the ground. Amy felt Gary tap her and she looked to where he was pointing with his other hand. There was a small cluster of Clefairy trapped under a net on the far side of the hallow cavern they were in.

"I think I hit something, go check if its moonstones!" Cassidy snapped from the drill.

"Why do I have to go check?" Butch yelled back.

"Because I said so! Now go do it!"

"Right away boss" Butch said bowing in a mocking way "you old hag" he muttered as he turned away.

"What was that Botch?"

"ITS BUTCH!"

"So what's the plan?" Seymour whispered.

"The plan is, you stay here and wait for us to save the Clefairy and the moonstones by kicking some Team Rocket butt. Come on Amy!" Gary said grabbing Amy's wrist and dragging her into the room.

"Hey wait-!" Amy tried to pull back but they had already been spotted.

"Hey, what do you think you're doing!?" Butch snapped and Cassidy took notice as well.

"Well well well if it isn't the nosy twerp from the Pewter Museum. Isn't that right Ben? So what's this, your girlfriend?" Cassidy asked jumping down beside Butch.

"ITS NOT BEN ITS BUTCH!"

"I AM NOT HIS GIRLFRIEND!"

Butch and Amy had spoken almost simultaneously. They both blinked and stared at each other.

Gary stiffened, then snapped at Cassidy "You can't get away with stealing moonstones! I'm going to stop you!" he pulled out a Pokeball "Go Sting!" the Weedle burst from its ball.

"You're joking." Butch said staring down at the little caterpillar Pokémon.

"Sting! Poison Sting!" Gary yelled and the Weedle jumped from the ground and smacked Butch in the gut with its barb.

"UGG!!" Butch grunted and fell backwards. Suddenly Sting began to glow. Brighter and brighter, until he started changing shape. When the glowing stopped, he had become a Kakuna.

"Alright!" Gary shouted.

"Get up Bert! This is no time to lie down on the job!" Cassidy snapped.

"I SAID ITS BUTCH! BUTCH! B-U-T-C-H! BUTCH!"

While this was going on, Amy had slipped around and was busy freeing the Clefairy. The pink Pokémon cheered happily as they ran out.

"Hey! Get away from those Clefairy!" Butch yelled. The Clefairy had run into the caverns at this point, so Amy sort of crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow.

"Um, bit late for that don't ya think Butch?" she said shaking her head.

"Hey! My name's B- hey that's what you said." Butch said looking at her in totally shock.

"Um... yeah, that's your name right? You kinda screamed it repeatedly for the past 5 minutes..."

"Yeah, but no one seems to get my name! Ever! And you did on the first try!"

"Wow, I have new superpower. Fantastic. So, are you gonna leave right now and stop trying to steal the moonstones, or are we going to have to force you." Amy said reaching into her pocket and retrieving Harmony's Pokeball.

Butch smirked "Guess you'll have to force us then. Go Sandslash!" he threw a Pokeball and the porcupine-like Pokémon stuck a battle pose.

"Harmony! Go!" Amy cried releasing the Jigglypuff onto the field "Use Sing!"

The pink Pokémon smiled, took a deep breath, and its melody filled the air.

"Oh noooo..." Butch trailed off as he fell forward onto the ground, fast asleep. His Sandslash fell with him. In fact, the sound echoed off the walls and filled the cave, so every creature in it fell asleep. Even Harmony. Soon the cave was full of gentle snores.

*****

Amy slowly opened her eyes. She seemed to be the first to wake up. She saw Harmony resting peacefully on the ground. She wasn't exactly sure how EVERONE had fallen asleep, but she decided to figure that out later. She returned Harmony to her ball and stepped over Sting on her way to the huge drill. She hoped to drive it away fast enough so that they could take this battle outside, where someone might find them and help them. However, halfway to the contraption it roared to life, causing all the sleep victims to snap awake.

"What's going on?" Gary asked groggily from the ground.

"Hey, the drill!" Cassidy yelled struggling to her feet.

"What?" Butch yelled over the roar.

"The drill! Someone's started the drill!" she yelled back.

"I can't hear you! The drill's too loud!"

"H-hey d-does a-anyone n-know h-how t-to d-drive th-this th-thing-g-g-g?" Seymour shouted from the shaking driver's seat. The Clefairy, Amy could now see, were surrounding him. Suddenly it pitched forward and started tunnelling straight into the ground!

"Hey! You can't steal our drill!" Butch yelled and dived down the whole after him, Sandslash and Cassidy following him.

"Well, that solves that problem." Gary said returning Sting the Kakuna from the ground.

"No it doesn't! We have to go after them!" Amy snapped.

"Why?"

"Cause it's the right thing to do." Amy said sending him a glare.

Gary closed his eyes, growled, then spat "Fine"

"Good." Amy said nodded and grabbed Gary's arm, pulling him over to the hole.

"Wait, we can't just jump down thEEEEEEERE!!!!!" Gary yelled in terror as Amy jumped off, dragging Gary with her. They hit more level ground a moment later, and after getting back to their feet they took off down the tunnel that the drill had made at top speed. They went for about 3 minutes before they saw light ahead.

"Guess they didn't get too far." Gary said breathing hard.

"Or we were just close to the edge of the cave." Amy said as they ran from the tunnel and into the outside world again. Seymour had crashed into a grove of trees, and had flipped over. "Predictable." Amy sighed. Seymour and the Clefairy were facing off against Butch and Cassidy with their Sandslash and Yanma. Amy guessed the Yanma was Cassidy's.

"Yanma! Supersonic!"

"Sandslash! Slash attack!"

"CLEFAIRIES! METRANOME!" Seymour yelled.

"Metronome?" Amy said confused reaching for her Pokedex, but Gary stopped her.

"Don't bother, I know, it's an attack that tweaks a Pokémon's mind into using attacks it doesn't know. It's totally random though, so those Clefairy could do anything. I suggest we get down, just in case." Gary said and Amy nodded, they both fell to the ground and covered their heads, watching through half closed eyes.

The Clefairy were waving their fingers back and forth, back and forth, back and forth, when suddenly they began to glow, almost like Kakuna did; only they didn't evolve. A great jet of fire flew from them and hit their foes with tremendous force, knocking them high into the sky, screaming the whole way. Amy sighed with relief as they rose and walked over to Seymour.

"I did it, I actually did it!" Seymour yelled in triumph. The Clefairy turned and looked at him curiously. "Erm, I mean we did it! Yay us!" Seymour yelled kneeling down and hugging the Clefairy.

"Well, erm, all's well that ends well I guess." Amy said with a small disbelieving smile. Gary rolled his eyes however.

"Waste. Of. Time. Can we go now?" Gary said irritated.

"Oh, you're going already? Well, at least let me show you the way through the mountain, the Clefairy will help too!" Seymour said with a smile.

"That'd be great, thanks!" Amy said nodding. Gary grumbled.

*****

So finally, as the sun set, Amy and Gary headed off down the road, away from Mt. Moon, Seymour and the Clefairy. When they were out of sight of the scientist Gary shook his head.

"That was one weird guy."

"I know." Amy said shaking her head.

"So, do you think we'll reach Cerulean before it gets too dark out?" Gary asked trying to see any lights ahead.

Amy pulled out her guild book and examined it "I doubt it, but if we keep walking we should get there about an hour or two after dark. I suggest we set up camp though, I'm exhausted."

"Yeah okay, so we'll have time to challenge the gym when we get there tomorrow right?"

"Honestly do you EVER stop thinking about battling?" Amy said with a sigh.

"Nope."

"I figured." Amy brushed her hair from her face and they got off to the side of the road and began setting out their sleeping bags and with a little help from Harmony, they were sound asleep along with just about every living thing in hearing range. Harmony looked at her new master with pride, and curled up next to her, falling asleep as well.

_((Joyful Note: Yes. I have set up this series as if they were episodes. I don`t know why. I hope you liked it, it`s all you`re getting tonight))_


	7. Swimming For Fun and Wartortles

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 7~Swimming for Fun and Wartortles**

_((Joyful Note: Yeah... my episode titles sort of suck now that I'm looking at them. Anyway, as for the subject of pokemon contests that was brought up in a comment, I'm afraid it'll be a while before I can take any suggestions. This is because I've already written this entire fanfic and also half the sequel. The sequel is in Orre, so that puts a damper on the contest idea. But, then they go to Johto and Sinnoh, so there's a slight possibility of contests. But I honestly doubt it'll happen, even if I do magically get that far. If I magically do get that far and finish all 4 seasons of this story, I had another 4 season series thought of with Drew as the male lead, but that is even more likely to be written then a sequel to my Supernatural DeanXCas fic. And that's nearly impossible. I think I'm rambling again, so I'm going to stop and let you read the actual story now))_

When Amy finally opened her eyes, the sun was already fairly high. Harmony was still dozing, and Amy put her in her ball so as not to disturb her sleep as she rose and stretched. She glanced over at Gary, still slumbering on. She smirked_, so much for his big hurry_. She began rolling up her sleeping bag and tidying up the camp, waiting for him to arise as well. Finally, she was laying on her stomach, her face about a foot from his, staring at him. She didn't want to wake him up, but she was starting to consider doing just that. Suddenly his eyes opened blearily.

"Wha-what? Amy? What time is it?" he mumbled, sitting up and stretched hard. "Geez I slept like a log." he groaned and rubbed his temples.

Amy checked her watch "About quarter after ten."

"WHAT?!"

"You do sleep like a log you know. Just grab something to eat and roll up your bag, I have the rest of the stuff packed up already." Amy said getting to her feet. Gary grumbled about not being notified or something, and complied with Amy's wishes. Soon, they were both heading again to Cerulean City.

*****

"So, do you know what kind of gym they have in Cerulean?" Gary asked an hour or so later as they approached a sign saying that they were entering Cerulean city limits.

"No idea, but I can check the guidebook." Amy said fishing out her book and leafing through it. Meanwhile Gary pulled out a black marker from his bag and wrote something on the sign, unnoticed by Amy who was engrossed in what she was reading.

"Its a water gym! Apparently they have three gym leaders, all sisters, and they give synchronised swimming shows on the weekends. And look here, just a 15 minute walk north of Cerulean is Cerulean Point, it says its a hot date spot," Amy made a scoffing sound, but Gary's head turned and he went to look over Amy's shoulder. "It's also where Bill lives, THE Bill! The one who created the Pokémon transfer system!" Amy gushed as they started walking again. Amy never did notice what Gary had written on the sign, though about a day later Ash, did, and he fumed about it for weeks after.

Gary's note read:  
Gary was here with Amy  
Ash is a loser

*****

So, they at last made it to Cerulean. Amy was thrilled with the change of scenery and had released all her Pokémon so they could enjoy the sights and fresh air as well. It was a quiet city, but it really looked beautiful. Almost every house had some sort of fountain in front, and there were some really interesting ones, many in the shapes of Pokémon. Harmony was in Amy's arms, while Isis trotted at her feet. Avion would fly off a few feet, wing around a bit, then land on Amy's shoulder. After a short while watching this, Gary relented to releasing his Pokémon as well, except Kakuna. But Slasher and Socrates walked on either side of Isis. They found the gym quickly enough. They headed for the front door when a security guard suddenly moved in front, blocking their way.

"Hey, what's the big idea?" Gary fumed, trying to get past anyway.

"Show's sold out kids, come back next week okay?" the guard grunted.

"But we're here to battle, not watch the show." Amy said grabbing Gary's bag with one hand pulling him back while still holding Harmony in the other.

The guard's face relaxed "In that case, come back in an hour, the show audience should be gone by then, and the gym leaders should be showered and ready to battle." the guard explained. Gary let out a frustrated sound, but Amy simply nodded and the group headed away.

"Oh, I know! Let's go see Bill at the lighthouse!" Amy suggested after they had walked a short time rather aimlessly.

"We don't have that long before the gym's free again!" Gary said like he couldn't believe she would suggest such a thing. Amy put her hands on her hips.

"Fine. You stay here; you do your battle first chance you get. I'll go see Bill and come back later" Amy said carefully and then turned right up the next street and started walking of... all the Pokémon following her. Gary blinked, and then clenched his fists hard.

"HEY! SLASHER! SOCRATES! GET BACK HERE!" Gary yelled but they just laughed and kept following Amy. Amy giggled as well.

"Looks like they like my plan better Gary." Amy said as she continued on her way. Gary stood fuming for about 5 seconds before running after them.

*****

After walking for roughly half an hour, they found their way north to a long beach. At the far end was a big lighthouse, but that wasn't what caught their attention. What did catch their attention was a huge Wartortle in the water, getting pelted with water guns from a swarm of regular sized Wartortles surrounding it.

"Well, you don't see that every day." Amy said blinking in surprise.

"SOMEONE HELP ME PLEASE!!!!" the giant Wartortle yelled from the water.

"You don't hear that every day either." Gary said cocking his head and crossing his arms with a confused and slightly pissed off look on his face.

"Hey, is that a zipper?" Amy said squinting at the giant Wartortle.

"So... there's a guy in a Wartortle costume in the water..." Gary said raising an eyebrow. Then he sighed. "I suppose we should help him out..."

"Yeah, okay. Harmony use- oh hang on, Gary cover your ears." Amy said to Gary. Gary and Amy, along with their Pokémon, clamped their hands/paws/wings over their ears. "USE SING!" Harmony broke into song, and in moments the Wartortles had fallen into slumber, along with the guy in the Wartortle costume. Amy and Gary ran out into the water, luckily it wasn't too deep, and pushed the Wartortle man onto the shore. "Hey Gary, think we should catch some Wartortles? I mean, they are knocked out and everything..." Amy said and Gary shrugged.

"I guess so."

So, after each of them had a Wartortle safely in a ball in their pockets (named now Quasar for Amy and Lucian for Gary, after Amy turned down Splash Master as a good name. Both because it was silly and also because she felt he had quite enough "s" named Pokémon now) they unzipped the Wartortle costume and pulled out a man with dark green hair, and a purple and green outfit. The costume was waterproof, so he was quite dry, sleeping peacefully.

"Well, that was weird. Your Jigglypuff has a really powerful song." he paused to yawn "If she had kept on much longer I would have been out too." Gary yawned again.

"Hey Gary, I think this is Bill!" Amy said looking closely at the sleeping man.

"Seriously?" Gary said looking slightly disgusted at the costume.

"Yeah, he looks like the picture from the guild book, here," Amy said digging out the guidebook from her bag, which she had dropped on the sand before going out in the water. She turned to the page about Cerulean's famous persons and pointed to the picture of Bill. They compared, and decided this was probably him.

"But if this is Bill, the inventor of the Pokémon transport system, what the hell was he doing in a Wartortle costume getting pummelled?" Gary said as Amy stuffed the book away again. Their Pokémon were bouncing on the costume as Gary and Amy discussed this, it turned out that the shell part was inflated.

"Well, inventors are eccentric. Hey, excuse me, Bill? Bill?" Amy said shaking the man and snapping her fingers.

"Let me do it." Gary said pushing Amy out of the way.

"Hey!" Amy snapped.

"WAKE UP DAMNIT!!!!!" Gary screamed. Bill's eyes snapped open and he sat straight up, bashing heads with Gary.

"Ow!" The both said at the same time, rubbing their heads. Amy and the Pokémon were laughing so hard it was starting to hurt.

"QUIT IT ALREADY!" Gary yelled and stood up, whipping out and comb and started to run it through his hair.  
'Who the heck carries a comb in their pocket?' Amy thought rolling her eyes as she approached Bill, who was by now standing as well. The Wartortles in the water had by now awoken as well and had swum away.

"Are you okay?" Amy asked Bill, who seemed to have regained his balance.

"Yes, I'm fine, I was trying to study the way Wartortles swim, and I think a lot of the balance comes from their ears!" Bill exclaimed happily.

"Yeah great. Okay Amy we met the guy, can we go now?" Gary said irritably. Amy glared at Gary. He glared back a moment, then crossed his arms and looked away.

"You can't leave already; I assume you helped me back there? Then you must join me for lunch at least!" Bill said cheerfully. Amy agreed before Gary could protest.

*****

After a delicious seafood lunch, followed by the Pokémon taking naps in their Pokeballs, Bill took them on a tour of his lab, and even Gary had to admit it was impressive. For Amy however, the most amazing room was a huge domed area covered with black tiles and on each tile was a white sketch picture of different Pokémon. It was creepy, and yet beautiful. Amy stared around in absolute wonder.

"This room represents my life's work. The Pokémon. Trying to learn about them. Although I know I'll never know all there is to learn, I intend to discover as much as possible in one lifetime. I'm famous for my transfer system, but I'm happy because of all I've managed to learn" Bill's eyes were shining, revelling in his glory to live in the world of Pokémon. Amy herself felt blown away by his passion and hung on his every word. Gary seemed to be thinking intensely as well, though Amy didn't notice. She also didn't notice Gary's face darken as Bill put his arm around her shoulders to point out a machine on the far wall. It had 2 glass cases on either side, with a metal contraption with lots of light bulbs and buttons in the middle, attached to both.

"That, over there, was my prototype transfer system. There was sort of a major bug in it though. Until it occurred to me to transfer them inside the Pokeballs I fiddled with this a lot, even though I knew it would be limited to smaller Pokémon. In the end, I wound up altering the Pokeball as well, although few people know that the new Pokeball design is my doing. In any case, that wasn't the bug that made me change my whole system."

"Well, what was then?" Amy asked drawing away from Bill and closer to the machine.

"I had already managed to transfer Pokémon from one end the other, but the problem was, after the first one, the next Pokémon to be transferred would have an alteration in DNA. It seemed that when a Pokémon was transferred, it left a DNA trail in the machine, picked up by the next Pokémon to pass through. It was completely random. My first experiment for example, sent a Caterpi. But my next try, with a Poliwag, came out with a green Poliwag! And, curious, I sent it back again. Its colour was now a bluish green, and its eyes resembled Caterpi's! I was, of course, shocked, and spent a great amount of time trying to fix this situation for the Poliwag, but it failed miserably. The Poliwag seemed not to mind though and liked its new alterations, but I knew that not all Pokémon would obviously, so I never used it again, although occasionally I've had Pokémon break into this room, and I've had a Wingull with a Poliwag tail and feelers, a Krabby with claws turned to wings, now I keep a much closer surveillance on this room though." Bill said and they moved on. Amy and Gary stared a moment at the machine, then hurried on as well.

*****

Almost an hour later they had ended their tour and were getting ready to go. "Thank you Bill, it's been a real honour meeting you." Amy said smiling and holding out her hand for Bill to shake.

"And it's been a pleasure for me." Bill said taking her hand, but instead of shaking it he bent and kissed the back of it. Amy smiled and blushed.

"Well, um," she giggled.

"Amy, let's go back to the gym BEFORE it gets dark?" Gary said with a scowl, grabbing Amy's shoulders and steering her away.

"Well, goodbye then, oh hang on just a moment!" Bill said suddenly and ran back inside. Gary started to leave but Amy smacked him on the arm, and he stayed, grudgingly. A few minutes later, Bill rushed back outside, holding two slips of paper in his hands "I almost forgot where I put these, these are tickets for a party on the SS Anne in Vermillion, but I can't go. It's in a week; plenty of time to finish your gym battle and get there, the ship is going to travel from port out to sea and then back around to just south of Lavender Town. It's supposed to be a really great party too, so I want you two to have the tickets, it's only fair payment for helping me out and all." Bill said handing the tickets to Amy. Gary promptly snatched them out of her hands and stared at them wide eyed.

"Wow, Amy there's going to be an exhibition, and battles, and trading, and, wow this is amazing!" Gary started going on as he read the back of the ticket, describing the party events, and after a final goodbye they headed off again.

"Not a bad trip, coming up to the cape was it?" Amy said with a smirk at Gary, who had at last put the tickets away.

Gary rolled his eyes "No Amy." he said with a hint of sarcasm, and then smirked back "But now we ARE going to get our gym badges. I can't wait to break in Lucian and see what he can do."

"You aren't going to use him for this battle are you?" Amy said looking concerned.

"Why shouldn't I?"

"Well, you just caught him! Using a Pokémon you just caught in a gym battle isn't usually recommended, you need time to work with him, and you don't even know what attacks he can use yet!"

"Okay I won't! Geez" Gary said and sped up his pace slightly. Amy matched it, and they headed back. Time to win some badges.

*****

Another half an hour brought them to the Cerulean gym's door. Another 5 minutes brought them face to face with the 3 gym leaders of Cerulean, Lily, Daisy and Violet.

"Like, welcome to the Cerulean Gym! Like, I call being this cutie's opponent!" Lily said giggling and grabbing Gary's wrist. He blushed and ran after him with a goofy smile. Amy blinked and felt colour creep into her cheeks. No way was she jealous. No, not possible, not possible not possible...

"And I'll like, take his girlfriend!" Violet said facing Amy.

"I'M NOT HIS GIRLFRIEND!!!" Amy yelled. Much better.

"Like, whatever. Come on, we're battling after them." Violet said and they all headed for the battlefield.  
The battlefield was a big swimming pool with mats in it. Gary and Lily stood at either end.

"Like, this battle is like, totally 2 on 2! Like, battle ends when both of one trainer's Pokémon are unable to battle! Challenger and can totally change Pokémon whenever he wants, but gym leader is like, not allowed, so, like, start!" Daisy said smiling.

"Go Poliwhirl!" Lily called, throwing a ball onto the mat. It released a rather odd looking Poliwhirl. Its skin was blue/green, and the eyes were like big black dots, kind of like a Caterpi's...

"Um, did she get her Poliwhirl from Bill? Up at the lighthouse?" Amy asked Violet.

"Like, totally! Bill is SUCH a gentlemen, and we were like, visiting him a while ago and he had that Poliwag there, and there had been an accident, but like, Lily though it was totally cute like that, and like, took it anyway. It was like, totally cool!" Violet explained and Amy nodded, smiling as well, and turned her attention to the battle at hand.

"Go, Lucian!" Gary called, releasing his new Wartortle. Amy's eyes widened.

"Gary I told you no..." Amy moaned under her breath.

Lily wasted no time "Like, Poliwhirl, Bubble beam!" Lily said pointing at Lucian.

"Dive!" Gary yelled, and Lucian turned around and stared at Gary in confusion. He still didn't quite get what had occurred yet. He had been attacking some trespasser, then he fell asleep, now he was in battle with some kid who was calling him Lucian? What the heck was this about? The Bubble beam slammed into his shell and he fell off the mat into the water. He swam to the surface and glared at Poliwhirl. "There, see? Now get back on the mat and use Water Gun! Quick!" Gary ordered. Lucian composed himself and then complied excitedly.

"Wartortle!" he said happily, crawling onto the mat and sending a foamy blast at Poliwhirl.

"Dive!" Lily yelled and Poliwhirl died a back flip into the water, evading the attack.

"Get in there too!" Gary called out, and Lucian dove after Poliwhirl. They slammed into each other underwater and started a wrestling match under there."RAPID SPIN!!!" Gary screamed, after checking his Pokedex for Wartortle attacks. Lucian withdrew and started spinning. He slammed Poliwhirl and he flew out a few feet. But he also started a whirlpool, which drew him straight in again, onto to be bounced back out. This happened several times before Lily cried out

"That's enough! Like, Poliwhirl, ice punch!" Poliwhirl's fist glowed ice blue and slammed the spinning shell, freezing it instantly in the water around it. He spun a couple more times, and then sank to the bottom.

"Lucian? LUCIAN!!" Gary yelled.

"Poliwhirl, bring Lucian back up please and thank you!" Lily said and her Pokémon dove down, grabbed the ice block with the Wartortle shell inside and swam to the surface, depositing it on the nearest mat. Gary stared at it in dismay.

"Lucian is unable to battle! Like, Poliwhirl wins! Bring on number two challenger!" Daisy announced. Gary returned the shell and the ice block from the mat. He would have to unfreeze his Pokémon later. "Fine then, Go! Slasher!" his Raticate appeared on the mat, snarling.

"Okay, Poliwhirl! Bubble beam!"

"Knock them away with your tail!" Gary yelled. Slasher's tail cracked like a whip and knocked the bubbles away, right back at Poliwhirl. They slammed the surprised Pokémon into the water.

"Like, oh no! Get over there and water gun him!" Lily shouted, and Poliwhirl jumped up and sent a jet of water at Slasher.

"Duck and use Swift!" Gary yelled. The rat Pokémon narrowly avoided the water blast and sent forth a stream of stars, hitting their target like heat seeking missiles. Poliwhirl slammed into the water yet again. Lily looked frustrated.

"Go in for it! Ice Punch!"

"JUMP UP!" Raticate flew above the Pokémon's attack. "NOW USE DOUBLE KICK!" The rat Pokémon slammed 2 powerful kicks into Poliwhirl's head. The ice punch faded, the Pokémon swayed, and then fell face first into the water.

"Like, Poliwhirl is unable to battle! Slasher wins!" Daisy said like she couldn't believe it.

"You fought well Poli! Really!" Lily said returning her Pokémon. "That was like, totally amazing, but now, go Kingler!" Lily said throwing her Pokeball. Out came a Kingler. With wings instead of claws.

"More from Bill?" Amy asked Violet.

"Yup. He can't fly though, don't worry too much"

"I won't"

"USE WHIRLWIND!" Lily yelled. Kingler started flapping hard, sending torrents of water flying at Slasher. The surprised rat Pokémon dug his claws hard into the mat, and managed to stay on as the water cleared.

"Okay, we weren't expecting that, but who cares? Swift!" Gary called.

"Do you have any of Bill's mutant Pokémon Violet?" Amy inquired.

"No, Lily took them all. She also has a Wingull with a Poliwag tail and feelers."

_'Could have guessed that.'_ Amy thought smiling.

The two Pokémon clashed for another 5 minutes before a winner was finally decided. It was Slasher. Gary went into a frenzy of victory dancing. Soon after Gary had his badge in his badge case, Amy stood at the challenger's side of the field, Violet at the other.

"Ready? Like, go!" Daisy said and the battle commenced.

Two rounds later, Avion finished Violet's Seel, and though her Seaking knocked Avion out of the sky Harmony took the win. While Gary bragged about his 'greatness genes' to the sisters and turned Violet's hairdryer on Lucian, Amy took out the red velvet case from her bag. She opened it and looked closely at the Boulder Badge already pinned to the black silk interior. She pinned the Cascade badge beside it and closed the lid. She let out a small sigh and packed it away again.

*****

A few hours later, after checking into the Pokémon Center, Amy and Gary were in their room. Their Pokémon were eating on the ground, and Amy was once again on the top bunk. Gary had seemed to have given up fighting for it. Amy watched as the Pokémon ate below, Quasar and Lucian at one bowl, Avion eating from a small pile of bird seed. Socrates and Isis shared a bowl while Slasher and Harmony shared another, though Slasher keep giving Socrates ticked off looks. Sting wasn't eating, but that didn't surprise Amy, after all, cocoon Pokémon didn't need to eat.

"Hey Amy?" Gary asked from the bottom bunk.

"What?" Amy asked as she fixed her blanket on top of her. She was already in her pjs and as soon as the Pokémon were done eating Gary would turn off the light.

"When we were at Bill's, you didn't, you know, like him or anything did you?"

"Excuse me?!" Amy said in an annoyed tone "So what if I did? Because one, he's kinda too old for me, two, obviously he has something going on with Lily, and three, what the heck do you care anyway?"

"Well, you know, no reason..." Gary grumbled.

Amy suddenly blinked "Gary... YOU don't like me... do you?" she asked carefully, trying desperately to suppress a smile.

"What? No! I just, just, no!" Gary said jumping out of bed and looking up at Amy, who was sitting up now, looking panicky.

"Oh my gosh, you do!" Amy said in shock, putting her hand over her mouth.

"No! Well, maybe, but, well you don't like me so what the heck's the point?! Grr... you know what? Forget it. Just forget it. It doesn't matter."

"How long have you liked me for?" Amy said her mouth giving into a blushing smile.

Gary didn't look at her, but she could tell he was blushing too.

"Always..." he muttered "Oh geez, just, FORGET IT ALREADY!" Gary yelled and ran from the room. The Pokémon looked up as Gary left, and then turned to Amy.

"GARY!" Amy yelled and hurried down the ladder to the ground. She was about to tear after Gary, but first turned to the Pokémon.

"Um, you guys just stay here alright? And, and don't trash the place, I'll be right back okay?" Amy said and tore out after Gary.

*****

It took Amy about 10 minutes to find Gary, out on a bridge near the center. She snuck up on him and sat beside him, trailing her legs off the side like he was doing.

"Gary..." she whispered and he glanced at her, looking quickly away. he still answered though.

"I-I liked you for... a long time. But you were always with Ash, and well, I just sorta started teasing you, I don't know, and then you started yelling at me, and then now, years later, gramps sets me on my journey with you, just the two of us, and well..."

Amy placed her hand on Gary's, he turned towards her, blushing hard and looking stunned. "Gary, I-I'm not sure what to say. But, first off, I never liked Ash in that way. But... I don't know if I'm ready for that kind of relationship with you... or anyone for that matter. Still though we at least be friends right? Just so we can see how that works out." Amy said offering her other hand to Gary.

"Um, should I kiss it like Bill did?" Gary said looking at it. Amy gave a weirded out look.

"N-no, a handshake will quite suffice." Amy replied.

"Oh, sure" Gary said with a nervous laugh and shook it. Now they were friends.

_((Joyful Note: Nope. No romance yet. It'll happen eventually... just stay tuned))_


	8. Flight of the Moonstones

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 8~Flight of the Moonstones**

_((Joyful Note: So um... yeah. Duplica shows up next chapter! But for now you'll have to just deal with some plot development. I know you've probably noticed a lack of Gary/Amy romantic scenes. Well... in this story... it's really more plot driven then pairing driven. Or at least it's supposed to be. So although the pairing is there, it's more about the overall plot. Which is actually not in this season, this season is more of the Hobbit to my Lord of the Rings. Not to say it's nearly as good as that series, but it is mostly just to set up the character relationships before I make a big overall plot over the 3 sequels, of which I've only written half of the first. Sorry.))_

Gary and Amy had walked out of Cerulean and down the path through a small wooded area, heading for the tunnel that would detour them under Saffron and to Vermillion in silence. They had discovered, much to Gary's annoyance, that Saffron boarders were closed. Amy had found that kind of weird and would have said they should check it out if the cruise wasn't only a week away. They may need the time. Someone else would probably handle it if there was any problem anyway.

Amy was starting find this silence VERY awkward. She knew it derived directly from the new knowledge of Gary's emotional state for her, and she didn't like that. However, luck was on her side, her stomach growled loudly.

"Um, you want to stop for lunch?" Gary asked hearing Amy's stomach. Then his growled as well.

"Do you?" Amy said with a smirk. She swung her bag off her shoulders and they sat down to eat by the side of the small river that ran beside the path. Amy perched herself on a rock and released her Pokémon, as did Gary, and they ate in silence as the Pokémon played in the water. Well except Sting, which was sort of to be expected. Amy was chewing her sandwich thoughtfully when Sting began to glow. Gary hadn't noticed yet, but Amy had. She poked him in the side.

"Hey what was that for?!" Gary snapped and caught sight of his Kakuna changing shape.

"Looks like Sting's growing up before your eyes." Amy said smiling as the cocoon Pokémon blossomed into a Beedrill, and flew up into the sky where Avion greeted him happily.

"ALRIGHT!" Gary cheered, doing his victory dance again. Amy groaned, covering her eyes, but the other Pokémon were being just as congratulatory.

"Hey Amy, want to have a battle?" Gary said suddenly, turning to her. Amy took her hands from her face and gave him an odd look.

"What, now?"

"Yeah, I want to see what Sting can do now. He can battle Avion, a sky battle'd be good for both of them, right?" he said and Amy sighed and shrugged.

"Sure whatever."

The other Pokémon were put safely back in their Pokeballs and Avion and Sting faced off in the sky, their trainers at opposite sides of the path.

"Alright ladies first! Avion, use Peck!"

"Twin Needle!" Gary said, checking his Pokedex for Beedrill attacks

And they flew at each other, jabbing with stingers and beak, like a deadly dance. Their bodies moved together, apart, taking the openings, blocking assaults. Amy stood fascinated for a moment, and then realised this was not going to help them win. They were equally matched here it seemed. It was time to unleash something different.

"Avion! Back off a bit, use Gust!" Amy yelled, and Avion suddenly darted back, Sting's needle arm just grazing his feathers. He then started flapping hard, very hard, and a small tornado whipped up and around Sting, making him spin around in midair. He looked pretty dizzy.

"Sting! Get out of there! Beat your wings, drive it back!" Gary yelled, waving his arms. He was panicking. Sting started beating them, and the Gust began to disparate "Now use Fury Attack!" Sting dived again at Avion, but just before the attack hit its mark, there was a bang from their right and a net zoomed out and over Sting and Avion.

"What's going on?!" Gary said spinning around. Two men with black hats that cast their faces into shadow and dark clothes with a big red R on each came out of the trees. Clearly they were Rockets, and they were holding a giant net throwing gun. There was a rope connecting the gun to the net hold Sting and Avion.

"What do you think you're doing?!" Amy said angrily running over to the net. A sudden electric blast ran through it. Amy stumbled back and shielded her eyes, while Sting and Avion let out screams of pain. The rope retracted, dragging the Pokémon helplessly towards the Rockets. Amy could see now that the one holding the gun had rubber gloves.

"Yeah, don't try any funny business, Team Rocket has taken possession of your Pokémon for a very important mission, you should be proud." the one without the gun said in a rough voice. Gary and Amy glared at him.

"And what if we aren't?" Gary said pulling out Slasher's Pokeball.

"Then we'll just have to shock you out of existence. Go, Electabuzz!" The gun less Rocket yelled, releasing the yellow and black stripped Pokémon. Amy frowned. It looked powerful, but Gary released Slasher anyway.

"I'm not going to back down without a fight. Slasher, Quick Attack!"

"Thunder punch!" The Rocket yelled. Electabuzz's fist glowed and crackled with electricity, and before Gary could tell Slasher to duck, it planted itself straight in the rat Pokémon's face!

"Ouch, that's gotta hurt" Amy muttered. Raticate lay motionless on the ground and Gary sheepishly returned him. "Guess I'm up, Isis! Rollout!" Amy called, throwing her Pokeball as she did so. Isis flew out and curled in midair, soon paving her way towards the electric Pokémon.

"Thunder punch again!"

"CURVE AROUND!" Amy yelled, and Isis did so, still heading for Electabuzz, but Amy knew that it wouldn't be enough.

"Gary, get Socrates out here, we'll hit him from both sides!" Amy whispered to Gary. Gary looked a bit uncertain, but nodded anyway.

"Right, go Socrates! Rollout as well!" Socrates burst forth and charged Electabuzz.

"Hey! Two against one isn't fair!" The Rocket said looking freaked.

"Neither is taking another trainer's Pokémon! FINISH IT!" Amy yelled. Both Eevees smacked Electabuzz from both sides. The attacks on their own weren't much, but together, they leave the electric Pokémon out cold. Now the Rocket returned his Pokémon.

"Now it's your turn!" Gary said smirking "HIT THE ROCKETS!"

"NO GARY!" Amy said shaking her head wildly, but the Eevees had built up a head of steam and charged them. The Rocket's screamed and hugged each other in fear. They hit them hard, sending them sailing off, over the trees, landing somewhere deeper in the woods.

"Yeah, I did it!" Gary said punching the air. The Eevees were panting on the ground.

Amy scowled "You did it alright, they still have Sting and Avion, THEY HAD THEM WHEN YOU SENT THEM SAILING YOU JERK!" Amy yelled and ran over, scooping up Isis and heading in the direction the Rockets had sailed at a run.

"Where are you going?!" Gary yelled after her.

"To go rescue them! You get the bags and follow me!" Amy yelled over her shoulder and kept running. Gary yelled something back but she couldn't hear it. She didn't care much either. Gary stood frozen to the spot a moment, disbelieving. Luckily Socrates pawed his leg and he came to, grabbing the bags before he and his Eevee ran after Amy and hers.

*****

After a while, Amy stopped running. If she hadn't caught up to them by now she wasn't going to, at least not this way. Gary caught up with her a couple of minutes later, and stood panting for another 30 seconds.

"So, what do we do now?" Gary asked Amy upon regaining his breath.

Amy shook her head. "I don't know. But I'm worried. What did they mean by plans? I hope they don't hurt Avion. Or Sting." she sighed, and leaned against the tree, thinking. Gary lowered his head and crossed his arms, trying to think as well. Even Socrates and Isis looked thoughtful. Suddenly a great squawking came from the tree above, and a great silver bird Pokémon fell from the tree, swept to the ground, and landed neatly. It turned toward Amy and Gary, squawking in anger. She advanced on them. Gary and Amy backed up against the tree.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Amy asked, pulling out her Pokedex and flipping it open worriedly "It says here it's a Skarmory." she said glancing at the description. Isis and Socrates walked over to the Skarmory and started to... talk with it. Gary and Amy stared at them as the Skarmory squawked and the Eevees yipped. The Skarmory started off looking like she was going to kill something, but it ended up looking so sad Amy's heart nearly broke. Finally Isis and Socrates nodded and turned to their trainers.

"Well what is it?" Gary asked crossing his arms.

The Eevees started to pantomime. Isis smiled and made happy noises, while Socrates pushed himself to the ground on his back and made cooing noises. Isis nuzzled him. Then she jumped off to one side and acted out shooting a gun. She jumped and landed on top of Socrates who cried loudly. Isis dragged him away, then jumped back and waved her front paws in the air, shrieking. Finally she ran in a circle, paw above her eyes like she was seeking something. Then Socrates and Isis stood before Gary and Amy as if to beg them to understand.

"What... the heck... was that?" Gary said slowing looking down at them like they had each grown an extra head. Amy gave him an exasperated look as Isis and Socrates looked like they might cry.

"CLEARLY, This Skarmory was with her baby, when those Rocket guys from earlier captured it, and now this Skarmory is searching for it." Amy explained slowly clearly. The Eevees jumped up and down happy.

"Oh right I knew that." Gary said nodding solemnly.

"Yeah, right." Amy said shaking her head. "Well Skarmory, we lost friends to those Rockets too, any leads yet?" Skarmory shook her head.

"Well, give it another shot?" Gary told the Skarmory more then asked. Skarmory rolled her eyes and flew up, searching half-heartedly.

"Gary, if she hasn't seen anything yet, why would she-" Amy was cut off by triumphant squawking from above. Gary just smirked annoyingly. Skarmory took off through the air and Amy and Gary followed, recalling their Pokémon as they ran.

*****

At last the Skarmory landed, beckoning them closer. They hid behind a grove of trees and gazed out at a clearing. What they saw shocked and disgusted them. A huge metal container was being loaded with moonstones by rockets while about a hundred flying Pokémon were attached to it with ropes. A giant steel rod was on the top of the container. The flyers were all under those electric nets, looking pretty miserable. It took Amy a moment to pick out Avion and Sting. It was a hodgepodge of Pokémon types, from bugs like Butterfrees and Venemoths to normal bird types like Pigeys, all tied together.

"God, they aren't actually planning on making those Pokémon fly this thing somewhere are they? No way they could carry this much weight! Heck, a jet engine couldn't!" Gary commented in a whisper.

"Seems they have that too." Amy said pointing to the giant engine on the bottom of the container "I guess they mean to use them together"

"This isn't right!" Gary snapped, standing to stand by Amy dragged him back down.

"Not yet! Let's get a plan first please!" she hissed.

"Well the Skarmory doesn't seem to need a plan." Gary hissed back. Amy's head snapped around.

"What?!"

The Skarmory mom had flown from the bush towards a smaller Skarmory under a net, clearly its baby. It squawked happily as it mother descended.

"Hey, look! Another flyer to help with the load." It was a familiar voice. Cassidy stepped out, with Butch at her side. They seemed to be overseeing this operation.

"Well what're you waiting for Grunt?!" Butch snapped at a subordinate "Get the net gun!"

"Yes boss!" the grunt said grabbing his gun and shooting it towards the Skarmory mom.

"OH NO YOU DONT!" Amy yelled running forward. She jumped in the way of the net... which of course fell on her instead "Fly away from here Skarmory!" Amy yelled. The Skarmory shook its head and continued to try to free its baby.

"Hey, it's that girl!" Butch said blinking in shock.

"Where's your boyfriend?" Cassidy asked as the grunt shot again at the Skarmory.

"He's not, my, BOYFRIEND!" Amy yelled launching herself up in front of the next net as well.

"Bud, shock that girl will you?" Cassidy snapped.

"It's Butch! I don't see why..." Butch snapped back, but went to press the button. Amy winced, waiting for it.

"Don't you dare!" Gary yelled leaping from out of nowhere and tackling Butch to the ground. By this point the Skarmory had freed its child and they were flying away. Clearly Skarmory had no interest of being a help to any but its own brood.

"They're getting away Beetle!" Cassidy yelled grabbing the gun and firing wildly. Meanwhile Gary and Butch wrestled on the ground as Amy and the grunts watched in confusion.

"Hey, gedoff kid..." Butch groaned pushing Gary off and grabbing the remote again.

"NO!" Gary yelled running over, just as Cassidy accidently launched a net their way... landing on top of them both. Butch pressed the button hard. Every net lit up with electricity. Amy felt wild pain shoot through her and she screamed. She could smell her clothes, hair, and even her skin burning with it. She couldn't even hear the cries around her as the remote overloaded and exploded. The electricity stopped, and Amy passed out.

*****

When she came to, Amy found herself tied up, back to back with Gary. She wiggled around until he woke up as well.

"Wh-what's going on, where's team rocket?" Gary snapped suddenly.

"In front of me" Amy hissed back. They were sitting behind Butch and Cassidy, who were overseeing the final bits of the loading. The sun was setting.

"It won't be long now before its dark enough to take off unnoticed." Cassidy said briskly.

"Yeah," Butch glanced behind him and Amy closed her eyes, and poked Gary in the back to make him be quiet "These two haven't woken up yet. Do you think you gave them too much sleeping powder..."

_'We were drugged then basically. That's why it took us so long to wake up; after we went out by the electricity they drugged us'_ Amy thought to herself, eyes still closed.

"Too much? What are you talking about? Anyway, we were in luck, the girl had a moonstone with her, and now we have some more Pokémon to give to the boss, along with this flying legion." Cassidy said with a smile.

"Yeah, but what's going to happen to them when we take off?" Butch said, sounding almost... concerned?

"Bill, really, why should you care? We're just leaving them here, they'll probably figure a way out or someone'll come along, and by then we'll be long gone."

"ITS BUTCH!" he yelled, causing some grunts to turn their heads "GET BACK TO WORK!" they turned away.

"Whatever." Cassidy rolled her eyes.

"Well anyway, it's just that, what if they... tell someone?" Butch said suddenly.

"Tell who? The police? Like that stupid blue-haired freak Officer Jenny? Please" she rolled her eyes again.

"Well, yes, but that could lead to someone else finding out, like Lance, you know how much the boss hates that guy. He's ruined a lot of our plans..."

"He won't find out till it's too late, he's going to some party on some cruise ship this week. Not in contact. Plus we took their tickets to the party as well, though I'm shocked they were even invited." Cassidy sneered.

"Yeah sure, but..."

"But nothing! Okay, okay, fine! In that case, let's just get rid of them before we leave no problems." Cassidy sighed.

"K-kill them? No, I don't mean that far, we could just, just, um..."

"What, take them with us? Fat chance."

"Well..."

"OKAY! I can't stand it. LET US GO RIGHT NOW!" Gary had blown it. Amy opened her eyes as well.

"Way to go Gary." Amy said rolling her eyes.

"Well well well, looks like our prisoners were awake after all" Cassidy said with a sneer.

Suddenly a tremendous yell came up from the Pokémon... but it sounded, triumphant? The grunts were yelling as well.

"What's going on?" Butch said angrily. They turned and ran over.

"What IS going on?" Gary asked trying to look around. Amy smiled, taking in the site.

"Looks like Skarmory came back, and brought friends." It was true. Hundreds of Pokémon now filled the clearing, and they were freeing the captives. Sting and Avion flew around Butch and Cassidy unnoticed in the confusion of the battles erupting. They flew straight to Gary and Amy.

"Help us out you guys!" Amy laughed, and they did, easily. The ropes were cut and Gary and Amy stood, rubbing their wrists. "Great, now let's get our stuff..." Amy looked around, and saw their bags on a fold out table, with their stuff scattered on it. Everything was there, from their Pokeballs holding their Pokémon, to their pokedexes, to their cruise tickets, even Amy's moonstone, and she was sure that it would be in the container with the others. They gathered the stuff together and put it back in their bags, shouldering them. Sting and Avion looked at the fighting. The rockets were losing, big time. Amy smiled. She knew that she and Gary hadn't been much help, but she could hardly expect them to have been. They weren't superheroes or something.

"Hey, let's get that container open, I bet the Pokémon could help get the stones out of there and away from the rockets. I don't know why they want them, but it can't be a good reason." Gary said pointing to the lid, which had been closed.

Amy nodded "We can do that." they ran over, climbing the ladder, unnoticed, and pushed up the lid. It fell to the ground, with a loud bang. Now they were noticed.

"Hey! Get out of there!" Cassidy yelled running over. Sting and Avion flew in her way however and attacked.

"STOP THEM!" Butch cried, and the grunts converged on the container. Amy and Gary had begun tossing out the moonstones. The Pokémon, after Isis and Socrates had come out of their balls and translated their trainers request, grabbed them in arm and claw fulls and were carting them away.

When the container was roughly half empty Amy made Gary come out. He could get trapped in there. The battle had slowed, and the Grunts had fled. Only Butch and Cassidy remained, seeming pissed off.

_  
'Can't imagine why.'_ Amy thought sarcastically with a smirk.

"How dare you! Go, Houndour!" Cassidy threw a ball and the red and black skeletal dog appeared, growling. His flame soon burnt through Sting and Avion. Isis and Socrates held it at bay a while, but soon succumbed. It was just too powerful. Amy and Gary returned their Pokémon and hopped off the moonstone container before the jets of flame hit them as well. Butch and Cassidy climbed on top and started the jet engine. Less moonstones allowed the jets to work.

"You haven't won completely you twerps! We can still get more moonstones for our plan, and when we get to Mt. Magmar in Cinnabar-" Butch was cut off by Cassidy smacking him.

"Shut UP Dooch!"

"ITS BUTCH!"

They flew up and away, fading out. Amy and Gary stared up, transfixed.

"So... what now?" Amy said quietly.

"We get out of here I guess, maybe get some sleep, I doubt I'll need Jigglypuff's Sing tonight. Then, we get to Vermillion and get a gym badge."

"But we have to TELL someone Gary!" Amy snapped.

"Hey calm down we will! We'll go on the SS Anne cruise ship, find this Lance guy, and tell him!"

Amy blinked "THIS LANCE GUY?! You don't even know who LANCE is?!" Amy said shocked.

"Um..." Gary blinked in surprise at Amy's outburst.

"He's only THE Pokémon Champion! He's only THE greatest dragon master on the plant! He's only the strongest member of the ELITE FOUR! He's only THE hottest professional trainer on the planet!"

Gary's eyes narrowed "The, um, hottest?"

Amy rolled her eyes "Oh like I'd have a chance, we're 15, he's like, 30 or something. Anyway, you have a good plan. Let's get going." Amy said walking past Gary into the trees. Gary paused a moment, sighed, and while fingered his new moonstone that he had grabbed he followed Amy. Things might seem less confusing in the morning.

_((Joyful Note: Woo. More editing done. I should probably work on updating my south park fanfic now *sigh*))_


	9. A Shocking Imitation

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 9~A Shocking Imitation**

_((Joyful Note: With my south park story updated, I feel I can rightfully procrastinate some more on it! So more editing and posting of this story! Yay!))_

It was about noon when Amy and Gary finally entered the seaside town of Vermillion. The underground tunnel had been rather dull; they passed few people down there. Basically it just bypassed Saffron city. Then it was just a short road away from Vermillion, so here they were.

"Well, here we are. It took forever, but now we can finally get to battling!" Gary said and took off at a run. Amy stared after him.

"BUT WHAT ABOUT TEAM ROCKET?" she called after him. He spun around and jogged on the spot.

"Who?" he asked and she glared at him "Okay okay! But the cruise is in 5 days, that's great for you right? We can get our badges, wander around town a while, hell, we could run into that Lance guy in town right? Hey, you think he'd battle me?" Gary said stopping his on the spot jogging.

Amy put her hands on her hips as she walked towards him. "Like you would stand a chance. In case you haven't noticed, your Pokémon total is 4, and we couldn't even beat team rocket alone," she said shaking her head.

Gary scowled. "Fine. But I AM getting that badge."

Amy smiled a bit. "I actually don't doubt that too much. But I think we should stop over at the Pokémon center first, Avion and Sting should be looked over after the fight, Socrates and Isis as well actually. So after that's done we can go, get some food, do some battling, and maybe we'll have time to discuss our feelings in our room before bed."

"WHAT?"

"Kidding about that last part," Amy said briskly walking past him towards the domed Pokémon center's roof. Gary stared after her in totally confusion, and then followed.

After dropping their bags at the Pokémon center, they headed for the gym. Amy was a bit nervous after seeing the rooms full of baddy injured opponents of the gym leader Lt. Surge, but Gary didn't seem put out at all. Amy wondered if he had a brain injury.

However, whether his brain was or wasn't up to snuff, they did eventually reach the gym. Amy was immediately taken by how... flashy it was. It had a giant version of the Thunder badge on it, gleaming to the heaven, with VERMILLION GYM written with lightning bolts around it. Amy frowned.

"Hey Gary, you know, I've been thinking, maybe you should go first."

Gary turned and raised his eyebrow. "What, are you scared or something?"

"No!" Amy snapped, and then sighed, "Yes."

Gary's eyes widened. "You're admitting it?"

Amy nodded. "Like you couldn't guess anyway. Alright. Let's get it over with," she sighed again, steeling herself as she pushed open the enormous doors. She didn't actually believe doors this big could possibly be necessary anywhere but an aircraft hanger, nor did she truly believe they would open for her as she pushed. Nevertheless, they did. She and Gary stepped hesitantly inside.

"You know, I'd hold your hand if you didn't only want to be friends," Gary whispered. Amy scowled in his direction.

"Not the time, nor the place," she hissed. "Hello? Anybody in here? We're here to challenge the gym leader!" she called into the gym. Then they came out of the shadows, causing Gary stumble back. Apparently, he didn't expect the Legion of Superheroes coming to greet them. Because honestly, the muscle brigade was a bit much. There were 3 guys and a girl flanking around Lt. Surge. It was pretty clear who it was, seeing as he was playing with a badge in his hand and was the most muscular of them all. He also had electric yellow spiked hair, and had the gang leader type shirt, with ripped sleeves. Actually, they all looked like gang members. Amy could swear that if they were wearing the costumes for the Legion of Superheroes, they would probably fill them nicely. Might even stretch them out of shape actually. Not that she wanted to see them in tights or anything.

"So, you two wanna challenge me? Well, I guess I could use another workout, hey Tammy, after I beat them, how many consecutive wins will that be?" Lt. Surge said in a deep voice.

The girl responded, "32 since 2 weeks ago. Discount that one that set you back, 63."

"Nice." Lt. Surge looked down at his new challengers, seeming to size them up.

"Alright then, which of you chumps is challenging me first? Ladies first right? Well don't expect me to go easy on you just because you're cute," he smiled. Amy frowned.

"I don't expect you to. Anyway, hey Gary, do you want to go first or...?" Amy looked at Gary and he still seemed a bit out of it from the looks of things. Okay, they looked a bit scary, but Amy was confident anyway. Now that she saw the gym leader, she wasn't as scared anymore, though she obviously couldn't understand why. She guessed however, that it had something to do with the fact that she had expected some sort of flesh eating monster. Seeing that this wasn't the case, she wasn't as scared anymore. Gary glanced at her, then at the gym leader, and steeled his gaze.

"Yeah I'll go first. Time to set back your counter again Sparky," he said smirking. Amy couldn't help but feel slightly impressed at least.

"Sparky? Hey listen chump, in my gym, only I call my challengers names kapeesh?" Lt. Surge said with a scowl.

"Oh, and why would that be, Sparky? Is it psyching you out or something?" Amy said tossing her hair in a mocking gesture.

"No way! Okay chumps, let's get this thing started! No names are gonna psych me out, so deal with it!" he grunted. His loyal posse seemed a bit uncertain, but they shrugged as they all headed into the arena. Gary and Lt. Surge took their places at the opposite ends of the battle field. Bright florescent lights glared to life above them, and Amy found herself squinting until her eyes adjusted. Most of the gym was rubberized, presumably to prevent the more powerful shocks from hitting the audience and trainers. The field itself however, was metal. Copper, actually it looked like, not even green with age yet. If that wasn't an advantage, Amy didn't know what was. However, advantage or not, Tammy went to the judge's stand.

"This will be a one on one Pokémon battle, first to knock out the other's Pokémon wins, go for it," she said in a bored sounding voice.

"Right, go! Raichu!" Lt. Surge yelled, throwing a ball onto the field, revealing the evolved form of Pikachu. Amy wondered if Pikachu would look like that some day. Well, whether it would or not, that wasn't the issue. Gary now fingered his Pokeball and drew it from his belt.

"Okay, in that case, I'm going to use Slasher!" Gary called out, and his Raticate burst from its ball, looking raring to fight. Amy thought of all his Pokémon, this was probably his best bet.

"Huh, well this might actually be worth my time after all!" Lt. Surge laughed "At least you ain't using some baby Pokémon like most of the other little trainers who waltz their way in here."

Gary smirked. "You won't be laughing when your Raichu's the one sent to intensive care."

"We'll see about that. Alright, Raichu, give'm your Thunderbolt!" Lt. Surge growled and Raichu's body crackled with electricity. Amy knew, with that metal floor, Slasher could be destroyed in an instant. Raichu let loose the biggest shock she'd ever seen.

"JUMP, SLASHER!" Gary called. Amy breathed a sigh of relief as the rat Pokémon jumped away from the lightning coursing through the floor. It landed, getting a mild aftershock, but little else. Slasher turned to its foe, teeth barred. "Okay, Slasher, time to clean this guy's clock, Quick Attack!"

"I notice a fatal flaw," Amy sighed crossing her arms. Slasher dove into Raichu, just as Lt. Surge instructed another shock. This one coursed straight through the rat Pokémon and sent it sailing.

"You can take this Slasher! Come on!" Gary cried, but, upon landing, he was out cold. Amy frowned, worried. She had expected heavy damage, but this was the fastest knockout she'd ever seen. Gary looked completely devastated.

"No, no way, but I didn't even get a hit! It's not fair!" Gary yelled, returning his Pokémon and stamping his foot.

Lt. Surge laughed. "Right, okay girl, you're up next right?"

Amy stood, and then shook her head. With a soft smile she said, "It seems a bit pointless, Slasher'll need enough medical assistance, and I know if he couldn't beat you, I wouldn't stand a chance."

"What? Are you scared?" he grinned mockingly.

Amy shook her head again. "Nope. And I'm not stupid either. Come on Gary, we've got some training to do, as you should be well aware of by this point." she said walking passed him towards the door. Gary shrugged and followed. Lt. Surge and his cronies stared dumbly after them.

"So, you're not even going to try? We only have about 5 days before the boat leaves," Gary said as he and Amy walked away from the gym.

Amy shook her head. "Not yet. I will, of course, but not until I believe I have a chance." She gave him a why-don't-you-understand-this look. "I'm not going to send my Pokémon into a fight I know they will lose."

"Oh, right," Gary said looking down. Amy sighed

"It's not like I blame you for sending your Pokémon into battle."

"I know. But how the heck are we going to train our Pokémon enough in 5 days? Actually, less than that, since the battle could run long or something."

Amy shrugged. "I don't know. But we'll think of something."

Suddenly, they heard a voice from off to the right. It sounded female "Hey, do you know who I am? I am Officer Jenny! You have to let me through to see Lance!" A male voice spoke up. Gary and Amy turned to view this sight. There was a security guard speaking to Officer Jenny, only, her eyebrows seemed a little... bushier, and she was a bit shorter too...

"Young lady," the security guard said giving her a narrow eyed look, "I admit this is a very well made costume. However, I know you are not officer Jenny, because she is across the street right now, in that store, if you will turn and look," he said pointing. The fake Jenny looked, as did Gary and Amy. Sure enough, the blue haired police officer was seen clearly through the picture window, buying grapes and feeding them to her Growlith. The fake Jenny frowned.

"Okay fine, but you just HAVE to let me see Lance! It's my lifelong dream! PLEASE!" she moaned, dropping to her knees. A flash of red light produced a pink blob beside her. Gary pulled out his Pokedex.

"It's a Ditto." he said blinking. The Ditto was begging as well, matching its trainer's motions perfectly. Gary and Amy glanced at each other and walked over to this scene.

"Excuse me; did she just say that Lance was in there?" Amy said, pointing to the building the guard was in front of, "THE Lance?"

The guard groaned, "NOW look what you've done, girl..."

"I have a name!" the fake Jenny growled, jumping to her feet and pulling off the officer hat and blue wig. Underneath were two gigantic violet pigtails. "It's Duplica, and this is my partner, Ditto." she said with a smile and Ditto jumped up into her arms and joined her glare at the guard.

"Well I don't care! You can't get in to see Lance! He's a very busy man, and he can't be disturbed!"

"But we have to see him!" Gary growled, "My girl friend and I witnessed a crime in the forest outside of here and Lance must know about it!"

Amy stared at him. "Gary..." she said in a growling, threatening way

Gary held his hand up and laughed, "Girl friend, you know, girl space friend, girl friend as in a girl that's a friend, you know..." Amy continued to glare. Duplica watched interested.

The guard looked sceptical. "If someone took your lunch money kid, you should tell the police, not a renowned Pokémon trainer and expert."

"Look, don't you know who I am?" Gary said haughtily. Amy slapped her forehead.

"Here we go," she groaned, rubbing her temples.

"I am Gary OAK! Grandson of the great Professor Oak! I think Lance would want the HONOR of meeting me!"

"Wow, he's sure laying it on thick," Duplica mused.

"You're telling me," Amy sighed.

"And in any case, I THINK I know when something needs to be heard by Lance and not the police force!" Gary snapped, clearly not paying attention to the side comments from the girls behind him.

"Look kid, why don't you TRY talking to the police hmm? And if the police feel they need Lance, the REAL Officer Jenny," he eyed Duplica coldly, "Will come and alert him."

"We don't have time for that!" Gary snapped.

"Sir," Amy said pushing past Gary and getting ready to set her natural charm to work, "I'm sorry that my FRIEND here is an idiot."

"HEY!" Gary snapped, but Amy ignored him

"However, we really do need to see Lance. It is very important. We witnessed great cruelty to both wild and trained Pokémon in great numbers by Team Rocket, not to mention mass theft of moonstones. They are planning something big, and they specifically mentioned while we were listening that they didn't want Lance alerted! At least not until it was too late. I don't know when too late is, but we need to see Lance now, please, if he's in there, we need to," Amy said looking at him determinedly.

"Get out of here kid," the guard said eyes darkening. Amy's jaw dropped slightly.

"_What is wrong with you man_?" Amy screamed. Gary jumped back in shock. "There are _lives_ at stake and you won't even let us _tell_ Lance? Don't you have a family? _Don't you care about them?_ THIS ISNT SOME BANK ROBBERY! These are _professional,_ _organised _CRIMINALS!"

The guard looked shocked, but recomposed himself. "I'm sorry, but I have orders, and I'm not to let anyone in to see-" He was cut off by the door opening. A tall, spiky red haired man in a suit stepped out looking a little surprised.

"OH MY GOD, IT'S LANCE!" Duplica squealed with Ditto. Amy couldn't help but grin at the sight of him as well. Gary crossed his arms and grunted. Lance smiled awkwardly and gestured the guard aside.

"Did someone say something about Team Rocket?" he said, suddenly looking very serious.

"Yes, erm, I did," Amy said suddenly feeling very shy in front of this legend.

"I think you need to come in," Lance said to Amy, and Gary since he was standing next to her.

"Hey, um, can I come too?" Duplica said smiling a little; again her Ditto imitated her actions.

"Is she with you?" Lance asked Amy. Gary opened his mouth, but Amy jabbed him in the side.

"Yes, she is," she grinned back at the purple haired girl who looked extremely excited and grateful.

"Oh, and Lance, sir?" Duplica said hurrying around Gary and Amy.

"Yes?" Lance said puzzled.

She smiled and pulled out a piece of paper and a pen. "Can I have an autograph?"

It took about an hour for Amy and Gary to fill Lance in on everything they had witnessed of the actions of Team Rocket from Jessie and James in Viridian, to Butch and Cassidy, and the kidnapping of the flying Pokémon in the forest outside Cerulean City. Lance listened attentively for the entire narrative.

"So you see Lance, as soon as we heard you were here, we had to tell you, since you were the one that Team Rocket didn't want us contacting and all," Amy said as Gary nodded and Duplica stared at Lance with open wonder.

"I see," Lance said narrowing his eyes "This is serious business. I am very glad you told me. I'm not entirely sure what they're planning, but I do have an idea."

"Well what is it?" Gary asked after a pause.

Lance frowned. "I'm not sure if it's a good idea to divulge such information. It could be dangerous to you."

Duplica and Gary started to protest but Amy just smirked. "And to you as well, if we were interrogated, we can't tell what we don't know. Therefore, Team Rocket won't know how much you suspect"

Lance blinked. "Um, well, yes..."

Amy's smirk widened into an easy smile "Of course that could be more dangerous for us, I mean, if we're being tortured; they won't stop until they have the information."

Now Duplica stepped in. "Well, we could just lie."

"Yeah, except Amy can`t lie to save her life," Gary grinned. Amy scowled back.

Lance sighed, "Well, perhaps you should know. After all, if I don't make it back, someone should alert the authorities."

"Then tell us already!" Duplica said smiling excitedly.

"Ditto!" her Ditto said looking equally eager.

Lance smiled a bit. "Alright, well, I feel I can write off the first incident you mentioned, about that Jessie and James couple. Team Rocket frequently attempts to steal Pokémon. However, these moonstones are not their usual thing. It is a possibility that they're using them to evolve large numbers of Pokémon. However, I will deem this unlikely. Yes, team rocket does value strong Pokémon, but I doubt they'd use moonstones in this fashion. They are rare to find and hard to collect. I think they are probably using them to power something."

"What power is there in a bunch of rocks?" Amy asked, raising an eyebrow.

Lance smiled. "An excellent question. I believe, as do many renowned scientists, that evolution stones carry a special energy source. Of course, no one has ever found a way to harness this energy, but I think if it were possible, we could use enough stones to power, well, everything. And it's a nearly unlimited resource. Evolution does use up the stone, but only just, and judging by the amount of energy Pokémon need to store up to evolve, it could take years to use up the power in one stone. I think Team Rocket is working on a way to harness this power, if they don't have it already. I have a vague idea where they might be headed, and on Dragonair it shouldn't take long to get there and back, could you check back here the day the SS Anne leaves, early, and if I'm not here, tell the police to call the Cinnabar Island branch, I may need assistance."

"You'll remember to be here if you can be right?" Gary said with narrowed eyes.

"Of course," Lance said looking surprised that Gary could think he would forget such a thing.

"Well, good," Gary said looking away seeming slightly embarrassed all of a sudden.

_'Geez, is he bipolar or something?'_ Amy thought raising an eyebrow at him.

Soon after, Gary, Amy, and now Duplica were out on the street again. It turned out that Duplica was going on the cruise as well, and she and Amy were giggling like mad about Lance and every other cute, famous, Pokémon trainer they could think of. Gary followed behind them, arms crossed tightly, scowling dangerously.

Amy finally glanced back at him and shook her head. "Keep pulling that face Gary and it'll stick that way."

Duplica looked back as well, then turned to Amy. "I doubt it, I pull faces all the time, never suck on me, but maybe I have very flexible facial muscles."

"It's always a possibility," Amy said nodding and smiling.

"Look, we are supposed to be TRAINING remember? To beat Lt. Surge? Hmm?" Gary said staring at Amy intently.

Duplica piped up then. "I can help with that! You can fight Ditto! All we need to do is see his Raichu and Ditto can Transform into it, so it'd be just like fighting the real deal!"

"No way, just because Ditto can copy Raichu's features and attacks doesn't mean it can do much damage, not the same," Gary said, stepping up to Amy's other side.

"So? Oh hey, I got it!" Duplica said smiling

"Got what?" Gary said sounding uninterested.

"How you can win of course!" Duplica said with a giggle. Her Ditto on her shoulder now, looked at her curiously.

"Go on..." Amy said equally curious.

"Well, you guys have normal Pokémon right? Well, normal type Pokémon can learn lots of different attacks, but it's mostly from learning how to control the flow of energy from their body. The most common attack normal Pokémon can learn is Thunderbolt! Basically, if it has fur, it can learn it. It all has to do with static electricity control. Great huh?" Duplica said smiling.

Amy grinned. "That's great, if we can manage it before the boat leaves."

"I think you can!" Duplica said confidently.

Gary frowned. "Exactly how is learning Thunderbolt going to help us win?"

Amy sighed. "Don't you know anything about electric attacks? With the exception of Pikachu and Raichu, who make it in their cheeks, and in Mareep who uses super static, most electric attacks take electricity from the air, if our Pokémon can use Thunderbolt, we can use Lt. Surge's Raichu's electricity, take it right from him as it comes!"

Gary blinked. "That's, that's..."

"Smart," Amy finished for him, "Now I vote we give it a shot."

"Yay!" Duplica said smiling. Ditto jumped up and down happily. Gary finally sighed

"Fine. Incidentally, how'd you become so knowledgeable about electric attacks?"

Amy raised an eyebrow. "I attended the Pokémon Institute for two years, or did you not notice my absence? Ash wrote me every day and when I got back his mom told me he sulked the whole time I was gone."

"Oh, right, sorry, I forgot, it was a couple years ago that happened okay?" Gary snapped.

"You know you should really pay more attention to your girl friend's life," Duplica said smiling.

"He's, he's not..." Amy said shocked that Duplica would suggest such a thing.

"Girl space friend," Duplica smiled wider.

Amy scowled, and then laughed, surprising even herself. Gary just stared. He wondered how he was going to deal with both of them.

_((Joyful Note: Yeeeeah. Duplica is in it now! I can't even tell if this story is good anymore because I wrote it so long ago and read it so many times... *sigh* Well I'll keep posting it anyway. Yee-haw))_


	10. Learning New Tricks, Meeting Old Friends

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 10~Learning New Tricks, Meeting Old Friends**

Gary, Amy and Duplica, along with Slasher, Harmony and Ditto, entered the forest area at the edge of Vermillion City. They had just finished looking up which of their Pokémon were best suited to learn Thunderbolt and had come up with Slasher because its fur was actually hollow apparently, giving space to store the electricity. Harmony's body was highly elastic and made it possible to carry electricity as well, except should she carry a lot of it she would blow up like a balloon and tower over everyone. Ditto was going to transform in Raichu (whom it had observed through the window of the gym) and unleash electricity for Harmony and Slasher to absorb. They seemed pretty nervous about the whole thing, but had to done.

Ditto attacked the other Pokémon and they practiced absorbing. It took many super potions but at last they managed to hold the electricity in their bodies meaning that then they had to practice discharging it. Harmony blew up into an enormous electric ball when absorbing and pretty well exploded with the stuff when discharging causing massive property damage but other than that all was going well. Then Amy heard a familiar voice that made her smile, Gary scowl, and Duplica look confused.

"Hey! Amy! How're you doing?" it was Ash, oddly enough.

"Hi Amy! Nice meeting you again!" Misty greeted with a smile. It seemed Ash hadn't paid her back for her bike yet, surprise surprise.

"Amy, my love! Our paths seem to have crossed again, it must be fate!" Brock said with a goofy grin.

Duplica looked at me oddly "You're his love?"

Amy shook her head and replied, "no. Brock's just girl crazy. Also, why is Brock even here? He's the gym leader of Pewter City, don't they... need him there or something? Not to mention he's supporting a family of ten small children!"

Brock laughed and answered Amy's question, "Well, it turns out that my father returned from his Pokemon journey as a failure, therefore implying he sucks at Pokemon training, I decided to leave the prestige of the Pewter gym and the lives of my young siblings in his clearly incapable hands!"

"Um..." Amy raised an eyebrow, "That's... nice..."

"Pika Pi!" Pikachu said happily from Ash's shoulder and waved.

Gary smirked at Ash, "oh Ashy-boy, still trudging along are you?"

Ash lowered his head as blood crept into his cheeks from rising agitation, "grr, Gary..."

"Oh lay off Gary," Amy snapped and ran over to give Ash a big hug. She then greeted Pikachu and Misty and introduced them to Duplica and her Ditto who had reverted to his pink rubbery state from Raichu. Amy was pretty sure they had the Thunderbolt technique learned anyway.

"So how long have you been here?" Ash asked smiling.

"They've been here since yesterday training for the gym battle. Then in just a few days we're going to the party on the SS Anne!" Duplica replied looking pumped.

"I don't suppose YOU have a ticket eh Ashy-boy?" Gary asked with a smirk.

"Er... of, of course I do!" Ash retorted angrily.

"What? We don-" Misty started to say but Ash clamped his hand over her mouth. The red head struggled to pull it off.

Amy giggled, "Ash, it's okay if you don't, Gary's just being a jerk as per usual." Gary looked unhappy at Amy's assessment.

"Well we're just going to head over to the gym now; I think _I_ can handle it," Ash said glaring at Gary as he marched by.

"Um, you might want to train first Ash, Lt. Surge is tough..." Amy said with a frown and Ash laughed, starting to walk backwards with his hands behind his head in a confident pose.

"I'm not worried, I already have two badges..."

"Brock and my sisters GAVE you those badges Ash!" Misty snapped.

"They GAVE you the badges?" Gary laughed.

"HEY! I'll have you kn- AH!" Ash let out a yell as he tripped and fell backward on his butt. Amy sighed, knowing Ash was never the best at moving backwards. Gary was gasping in peals of mirth, and the rest of the group was sniggering as well.

"Okay Ash," Amy managed to squeak out around her giggles, "But we're still coming to watch you."

*****

It wasn't long before the group, now with 6 members, reached the doors of the Vermillion gym once again. They entered and Lt. Surge approached almost immediately with his posse.

"Come back fer more have ya? Oh and look, you brought some more baby friends!" the beefy gym leader said in his deep voice.

Amy sighed, "Surge, yes, Ash is going to battle you. Then Gary is going to try again, and then I will. Can we please just go to the gym floor now?"

Five minutes later Ash had run out to the Pokémon center with Pikachu and Lt. Surge was laughing heartily. Pikachu had tried very hard but couldn't withstand Raichu's super strong blasts. She wondered how Harmony and Slasher would survive them when they weren't even electric types.

_'But,'_ she reminded herself, _'our Pokémon have trained to absorb shocks like that, Pikachu probably never absorbed electricity before. He wouldn't have to since he can make his own.'_

Ash had left with Misty but Brock had stayed behind to see Gary and Amy's battles. Ash promised to be back before Amy's turn, but had to miss Gary's. Therefore Amy, Duplica and Brock stood at the sidelines when Gary stepped forward with his Raticate at his side, looking confidently towards Lt. Surge and his Raichu.

"Okay Slasher, let's do this." Gary told his Pokémon, who nodded and ran forward.

"Let's knock it out like we did the first time Raichu," Lt. Surge said as the new battle commenced. It began with a simple series of physical blows but then Raichu let loose its Thunderbolt. Gary was ready.

"Absorb it!"

"What're you talking about twerp?" Lt. Surge sneered but froze when he saw the Thunderbolt hit Slasher without leaving a scratch. Instead Slasher stood poised, fur crackling with electricity as Lt. Surge gasped, "What the-? HIT IT AGAIN!" Raichu attacked and Slasher was hit again and again by Thunderbolt. Raichu looked tired yet Lt. Surge still pushed it on. Now Slasher looked like a fuzzy pompom with fur filled with Thunder. Gary grinned and shouted for the release. The electricity hit Raichu with great force, knocking it unconscious. Gary had won. It took him a moment to realise it, and Amy hoped that this once... but no. He was victory dancing again. Amy thought she'd die of embarrassment, but Duplica and Brock looked amused.

"Come on Amy, lighten up and let him have some fun!" Duplica said giving Amy and one armed squeeze. Amy looked at her new friend and smiled a bit.

"Oh all right. YOU GO GARY!" she yelled standing up and throwing her fist in the air. He looked up at her a little shocked but then grinned widely. Slasher, still puffed up but less deadly, grinned as well before keeling over for a nap. Lt. Surge, still completely mystified by Gary's sudden win, handed over the badge and told Amy she'd have to come back tomorrow for the battle. He didn't add that it was because his best fighter had just been knocked out.

*****

Amy, Gary, Duplica and Brock met Ash and Misty at the Pokémon center and were informed that Pikachu was going to be fine. The spent the rest of night taking turns staying with Pikachu and Ash, who was camped up with his pooped Pokemon. Except for Gary, since they didn't need anyone else stuck in a hospital bed. Then all except Ash headed for the bedroom where they had 3 bunk beds. They discussed strategy and attacks for a while, then Brock and Gary got sort of left out when Amy, Duplica and Misty launched into deep discussion of which of the famous Pokémon trainers was the cutest. Duplica maintained Lance as best. Amy, although she admitted Lance was hot, insisted that Brawly from the Hoenn region was definitely tops. Misty shook her head to both and said Wallace, water gym leader from Soolipus City was the most handsome.

Obviously, Gary and Brock had a tough time with this discussion, so instead they started to discuss Pokémon food recipes. Then they all decided to turn it. At around midnight Ash wandered in as well, dead tired and hoping Pikachu would be okay. Amy still hadn't told them about Team Rocket and the moonstones and neither had Gary or Duplica. It just hadn't come up and they had actually forgotten about it for the time being, hard as it is to believe.

*****

The next day, four days from the ship's departure, Amy and Ash stood before Lt. Surge once more. Lt. Surge said he'd take Ash first, certain Pikachu couldn't have super charged so quickly after such massive damage. Wrong. Using speed rather than power had been Brock's suggestion and Pikachu ran circles around its evolved counterpart, making it thoroughly dizzy. Then, when confronted with Thunderbolt, Pikachu grounded itself by standing on its tail. Raichu ran out of juice and Pikachu clobbered him. Once again, Lt. Surge was in shock. Amy wondered if he would go emo on them and refuse to battle her, but he agreed to a match the next day once Raichu had recovered. Amy hoped Harmony was up for this.

They went out for milkshakes to celebrate and managed to get through the day of training and talking without incident. Brock went off to look into getting tickets for the S. S. Anne but discovered it was invitation only. Ash looked disappointed but cheered up when Amy suggested they get ice cream. He was always fairly easy to please.

Once again, Lt. Surge fell at the hands of Harmony's electric blast, which also blew out all the gyms lights and windows.

"Not your week, is it?" Amy said smirking as she hugged Harmony after the match. She got a grunt in response along with the badge and a shout for them to never come back. Amy found this hilariously funny and broke into hysteric giggles at odd moment throughout the day.

They still had a couple days until departure and spent the time basically having fun. Ash, Misty and Brock decided to stick around until they left on the cruise. Things went smoothly, as long as Ash and Gary weren't allowed to talk to each other. Or get anywhere near each other. In any case Gary looked relieved as Amy and Duplica bid farewell to Ash and the others. There was a scary moment when Amy thought she'd forgotten the invitations, but she found them stuck under her moonstone. Amy rushed to the deck to wave goodbye to Ash and the others, but couldn't see them anywhere on the dock.

"I'm sure they're there, looking up for us, there's just too many people to make them out," Duplica said, her Ditto on her shoulder.

"Yeah, you're probably right," Amy said nodding with a resigned smile.

"Eev," Isis said in agreement from her shoulder.

"Yeah, or maybe they just deserted you. You know, it IS Ash..." Gary said, with Socrates at his feet looking up at him uncertainly.

Amy whirled around and growled, "And what's THAT supposed to mean?"

Gary looked a little freaked out at Amy's response, "Well, you know..."

"She might, but I don't," Duplica said sounding confused.

" Never mind! It's just Gary being a JERK!" Amy yelled at him before storming away. Duplica stared a moment before following, calling her name. Gary looked at the spot in the crowd where both girls had disappeared. Socrates sighed and jumped up onto his shoulder.

Gary looked at him with a raised eyebrow "What?" Socrates rolled his eyes and jumped down, running after Amy and Duplica. "Hey, where are you going? Get back here!" Gary snapped, taking off after his Pokémon.


	11. Stow Aways and Stormy Seas

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 11~Stow Aways and Storming Seas**

Amy sat on her bed in the small cabin she, Duplica and Gary had decided to share aboard the SS Anne. She had her badge case in her lap, her three badges glittering up at her from it. Her eyes however were on the black velvet that they were pinned to, not the badges themselves. Her fingers ran over it softly. Isis sat dutifully next to her, leaning against her. Amy had shed a few tears, but quickly wiped them away, knowing she didn't want Gary or Duplica to come in and know she had been crying. She was angry at Gary for what he had said on deck. The ship was just now pulling away from the harbour and although it was true she hadn't seen Ash in the crowd that didn't mean he had deserted her. Gary knew that, he was just jealous. Amy knew he was just jealous. She had to calm down. The door opened and Amy looked up, a little startled. Duplica came in and shut the door behind her.

"Hey," she said crossing the room, her Ditto in her arms. She sat beside Amy.

Amy forced a small smile. "Hi," she said and then frowned again. "Gary is a jerk."

Duplica laughed, "I noticed, so why do you hang around him?"

Amy sighed and then told her about the contract her dad had made her sign. Then she had to explain why her dad didn't want her to travel with Ash, which helped Duplica understand Gary's comment about Ash deserting her. From there she explained her dad's over protectiveness in general, which led to explaining her mother, and her mother's death.

Duplica listened with rapt attention. Her eyes drifted down to the case in Amy's hands. "Was that badge case your mom's?"

Amy stared at her. "How'd you know?" she asked in surprise.

Duplica smiled sadly. "When you talked about her, you stared at it pretty hard and stroked it. I just guessed. I'm pretty good at noticing stuff like that; it helps me with my disguises and things. I am really good at disguising myself as people!" she said laughing. Amy joined in as she put away the badge case, though unsure as to what the joke was.

"So, I have to ask, do you like Ash?"

Amy stared at her "No! He's like a brother to me! I don't think I could like him that way ever! And I know he feels the same way about me."

Duplica looked at her oddly. "I wouldn't be so sure about that."

"What do you mean?" Amy asked, confused.

"Well... you have to have noticed!" Duplica sounding exasperated. "The way he looked at you when you weren't looking- oh wait I think I see the problem," Duplica laughed, as did her Ditto. Amy didn't laugh, and Duplica quieted. "So do you like Gary then?" she questioned after a moment.

Amy's eyes widened. "What? No! He's a jerk remember?"

"Well, he's jealous, sure, but he is cute."

"Great, you date him then," Amy muttered, rolling her eyes.

"Me thinks she doth protest too much," Duplica muttered to her Ditto, but Amy heard.

"I do not! It's just, he's so self-centered, and he treats me like, well, like he owns me or something..." she trailed off, seeming to go into thought. Then she froze and looked horrified. "Oh god, maybe I DO like him," she moaned loudly and flopped back on the bed, managing to hit her head off the back wall and screamed.

Duplica pulled her fingers out of her ears and winced. "Do you always share your headaches?"

Amy smiled, "Yes. I'm just a very sharing person."

"Care to share your thoughts then?"

Amy sighed. "Um... well, he drives me insane. And I know he likes me. I DID have a crush on him for a couple weeks when I was 7 or 8... he IS cute... but, well, I'm sort of stuck with him. If I do like him now, I'm going to have to pin it on Stockholm syndrome. I would have never liked him this way if things kept going like they were back in Pallet Town."

"Well you never know."

"True," Amy sighed again and rose, still rubbing her head.

"Well, it's not like you have to confess right now or anything," Duplica said and crossed the room to the door.

"Yeah okay, let's go find the guy," Amy said and rose as well. Duplica opened the door. Gary and Socrates fell forward into the room, looking up guiltily. Amy stared at him, white faced, then anger blazed in her eyes. "And now we're eavesdropping are we? Never mind Duplica, he's a jerk, and that's it," Amy glared down at him.

Gary struggled to his feet. "Hey, no! I was just following Socrates, he ran off after you, and you were talking, and I couldn't help overhearing!"

"That's the point where you tune us out or open the door! You don't stand there listening!" Duplica snapped. Isis barked something to Socrates, who looked embarrassed and jumped up to Gary's belt to retreat inside his Pokeball. Isis made an exasperated noise.

"Look, I don't know how much you heard Gary but whatever it was you'd better just forget it. I'm out of here," Amy muttered, leaving the room. Isis was at her heels. Duplica moved to follow her as well but Amy shook her head slightly and she stopped, confused, as Amy left.

"Why is she so mad at me?" Gary asked Duplica. Duplica sighed.

"I'm not sure it's just you, I think she's mad at herself."

"What are you talking about?" Gary grumbled, folding his arms and scowling.

Duplica scowled back. "Don't take that attitude. I mean she, well, how much did you hear?"

"Everything from Ash is like a brother to me," he said raising his eyebrows and smirking. Duplica frowned.

"Well she likes you, but she doesn't really want to because you're well, a jerk. Plus she feels trapped with you and I think when you fell in here," she grinned, "she might have thought you looked cute, so to hide that she blew up."

Gary cocked his head to one side. "You think?" Duplica nodded solemnly. "I'm going to go find her," Gary said heading for the door.

"Yeah well I'm going to check out the main room, they have a buffet! I'll see you guys later," Duplica said smiling and Gary shrugged as they left the room and headed separate ways.

*****

Amy meanwhile went up to the main deck and stared off the side of the boat at the water moving below and the ocean spray. She thought she saw the top of a Wailmer but she couldn't be sure. Wingull and Pelliper flew overhead, attracted by all the food on the deck. Trainers were feeding them. Isis was happily chasing away any that got too close.

Amy wasn't exactly sad or happy, she was just thinking. She wondered how she was going to be able to face Gary again too. This was going to be difficult. However, she assumed it would be necessary. After all, they WERE traveling together. Under contract, true, but even so... she sighed and turned around just in time to see Gary searching the crowd for her. Amy slightly shrieked and grabbed Isis before darting behind a pile of crates. A young boy with his mother stared at her and she grinned wanly at him before peaking over the crates at Gary who still looking. She breathed a sigh of relief although she knew she'd have to face him eventually.

Amy's eyes widened as Gary tapped a girl with long light brown hair like hers on the shoulder and said something. She turned and he stepped back a bit and started apologizing. Amy stifled a laugh. Then the other brown-haired girl's muscle head of a boyfriend appeared from nowhere looking ready to pummel Gary to a pulp. Embarrassed or not, Amy couldn't watch this.

She debated just closing her eyes but relented to reason and ran over to Gary, grabbed his arm, and pulled him away from the first blow.

"Amy? What-?" Gary said in confusion but Amy glared him to silence and gave the muscle head a look of distaste.

"I don't know what you think you're doing but I'd put those guns away if I were you," she said in the same calm tone she had used on Lt. Surge previously. By guns she was indicating his biceps, but that didn't seem to register right away and Amy and Gary marched off before he could say anything else. Amy was dragging Gary who seemed completely stunned by the arm.

"Idiot," Amy hissed when they were a safe distance away, hidden by the crowd.

Gary glared back. "Hey, how was I supposed to know that she wasn't you? Or that she had an enormous boyfriend..."

"I'm not talking about that!" Amy snapped. Gary stared at her.

"So what ARE you talking about?" he asked crossly.

"I'm talking about when you were eavesdropping! Although," she sighed, "I probably would have done the same thing."

"Really?" Gary said sounding surprised.

Amy nodded, and then glared again. "But I wouldn't have made it so obvious! Next time, get better footing, and raise your hand so that should the door open you won't fall forward and it will look as if you were about to knock. Also, a slightly surprised expression would be good as the door opens though if you weren't expecting it you'd have one anyway."

Gary just looked confused. "Okay..." They were silent a few moments. "Thanks for saving me anyway," Gary said absently. Amy stared at him.

"Oh, it's okay..." She felt herself blush and turned away. Gary reached towards her but drew back. This was too awkward. Luckily, Duplica appeared just then with arms laden with food from the buffet. Strangely enough, Ash, Misty and Brock were just behind her.

"Hey! Amy, Gary, look who stowed away!" Duplica laughed.

"Hi there!" the three new arrivals said in unison. Pikachu chirped a greeting as well.

"You stowed away?" Amy asked, happy for a distraction, but not believing this.

"Well not exactly, but in the crowd there were some guy, a girl, and a, well, I think it was a kid, and they said they couldn't go and gave us their tickets," Ash said smiling. Amy stared at him.

"What, um, did they look like exactly?" Amy asked glancing off at the waves. The land wasn't visible anymore. This boat went out to sea fast. She wasn't sure if she liked this...

"Well, um, the boy had long red hair, and a brown moustache, and the girl had short blue hair, kinda weird I know, and heavy make-up, and the kid, well, actually he almost looked like he was wearing a Meowth costume under his clothes," Brock said as if this was normal. Gary and Amy stared at him.

"And, um, that doesn't sound strange to you or anything?" Gary said raising an eyebrow, which twitched slightly.

"No, it sounds lucky to me!" Misty said happily. Duplica nodded in agreement.

"It sounds great! Now we can all keep hanging out!" Duplica said. Amy and Gary gave each other sideways glances, looking equally shocked and disgusted that Ash and his friends were so easily deceived. Obviously Duplica wouldn't know, she wasn't there when Jessie, James and Meowth attacked the Viridian Pokemon Center before.

Gary apparently couldn't take it anymore. "Isn't it obvious? That was Te-" but Amy cut over him.

"Ignore Gary, um... we were sort of talking, so he's mad, um... hey I know! You guys go down to the main room, we'll be right down." Amy said with false cheeriness which clearly Ash and friends didn't pick up on.

Gary did though, and gave her an odd look. He started to say something else but Amy discreetly stamped on his foot. He bit back a yelp of pain and his eyes watered. Ash however was looking at Amy, a bit put out.

"Oh, um, okay, if that's what you want," he muttered as he turned away. Brock looked confused a moment, then seemed to understand something and started walking with Ash, talking to him.

"What's going on?" Misty asked Duplica who cheerily offered to explain everything. Amy feel a drop of sweat at this but figured that Misty finding out about her messy love life was the least of her problems right now. Jessie and James seemed incompetent... and weird. Therefore leading Ash and the others onto a ship wouldn't be their style. There was something big up and Jessie and James' incompetence does not appear to be the norm with Team Rocket. Gary seemed to understand that too.

"Yeah okay, they're gone, so why exactly didn't we inform them about Team Rocket?" Gary asked looking annoyed. Amy sighed, rolling her eyes.

"Because, they'll feel awful knowing how easily they were tricked for one thing, and for another, knowing Duplica at least, if she found out about a Team Rocket invasion, we could have a serious panic. We don't want that, not with land so far away and we don't know how many of these people are Rockets. We need to do some spy work first. Up for it?" Amy said with a hard smile. Gary stared a moment and then smiled back a bit.

"Okay but won't they think something's wrong if we don't show up? You said we'd be right down," Gary pointed out.

Amy nodded. "That's true, so how about you go and see what you can find out and I'll hang out with the others. You can meet us in the main room in an hour with whatever you find out and we can figure out what to do from there," Amy explained. Gary frowned, but nodded.

"Right. I guess that's best, I mean, the others don't like me much anyway do they?"

"Well can you blame them?"

"I guess not," Gary sighed, "I don't actually try to be such a, um..."

"A jerk?" Amy supplied and Gary closed his eyes and gave a slight nod. "Just comes naturally? Glad you admit it anyway. Right, well, let's do this then," Amy said smiling a bit as she took Gary's hand, squeezed it, and then took off after Ash and the others. Gary stared after her a moment, looked at his hand, and then smiled. Time to find some Rocket slime.

Gary disappeared below deck and decided to first watch any crew members that seemed suspicious to find out if the ship was actually being controlled by these guys. He began by searching for crew members. He saw a couple men in uniform and trying his best to stay out of sight he headed after him. He was sure they had spotted him once but he didn't think they knew he was following them. No way.

The two crew members disappeared into one of the cabins. Gary waited a minute at the door and then opened it just a crack. It felt pretty safe since the room was full of people. He glanced off to one side and saw a boy with green hair and a dark-haired girl staring at him. He glared at them and suddenly felt himself dragged into the room.

"So this is the kid who's been following us, check his ticket?" one voice said. Gary couldn't see who had spoken as both men were behind him. He felt a hand reach into his pocket as the door was closed by a 3rd man dressed in a Rocket uniform.

"Hey look Rick, he's got Bill's invite!"

"Bill? So _this_ is Bill? This is excellent!" they sounded excited, why?

"Hey I'm not-" Gary started trying to wiggle away but abruptly a sharp pain spread over the back of his head and everything went black.

"Quick, let's bring him to Ben before he wakes up, we'll take the back way."

"Right," the other two men said together. Listening outside the door, Drew turned to Michaela.

"This doesn't sound good."

Michaela nodded. "Right, but what do we do?" Drew narrowed his eyes. He'd have to think of something.

_((Joyful Note: Yes I added Drew. Back when this was on Quizilla with this fanfic, I had a friend with a Drew fic and I gave her a part in my series. So Michaela is my Quizilla friend, Drew is her favourite character, and later on her OC character Violet appears... with my own take on each character. I'd write her out for this upload but she sort of plays a largish part so I'll leave her in. Just thought I'd explain her presence.))_


	12. Battle Ship

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 12~Battle Ship**

An hour later, Amy was getting edgy. Gary hadn't shown up. Ash, Brock and Misty hadn't seemed to have noticed but Duplica had questioned her about it. Amy shrugged in response to her question, provoking Duplica to question further.

"Seriously, where did he go? Really?" Duplica asked suspiciously. Amy sighed. If he wasn't back by now, then they should know right? Clearly something had gone wrong.

"Okay fine. Hey guys come here; you had better hear this too," Amy told Ash and the others. They stopped paying attention to the battle they were watching and turned to Amy, confused. She proceeded to explain about team rocket, and Gary going off to spy. Ash looked completely ashamed at being deceived by Jessie and James' pathetic disguises, but Amy assured him she didn't think any less of him. Really. This seemed like just the level of observance she was used to from him.

They figured they'd better go find Gary, but Amy made everyone swear not to start talking about Team Rocket. If they tell the wrong people they may be next to vanish. Before they went off Duplica and Amy went to the cabin and got their stuff. Gary had taken his with him and they weren't sure if they'd be back to the room later on if they had to disembark quickly or something.

*****

For the next half hour, they split up to search the ship. Misty and Duplica searched the deck and upper floor, Amy and Ash the lower. Brock stayed in the main room in case Gary came back late.

Amy and Ash were wandering down an empty corridor peeking into various doors when they rounded a corner and saw a green haired boy and a dark haired girl, the same two Gary had seen earlier, deep in discussion. They looked up, startled, as Amy and Ash approached.

"What are you doing down here?" the green haired boy asked sounding suspicious.

"Nice to meet you too," Amy said sarcastically.

"We could ask you the same question," Ash said stepping up to Amy's side. They all stared each other down a bit before Amy relented first.

"This is stupid. Um, have you seen a guy with spiky brown hair and a blue sweatshirt? May have had an Eevee with him," Amy asked. The dark haired girl looked a bit surprised before smiling.

"Yes, I think we have, I'm Machala, this is Drew. This spikey haired guy is your friend?"

"Um, more or less," Ash grunted.

"Erm, okay this may shock you but we think he was captured by agents for this organization called Team Rocket," Drew said frowning.

"You noticed them too? Do you know how many there are?" Amy asked wide eyed. Drew shook his head.

"No. But I expect you want to save him so you should know the details we do. The Rockets think he's Bill. You know, the famous Bill."

Amy blinked. "You're kidding. Why would they... oh, the invitation. Of course," she sighed.

"So do the Rockets have him or what? Do you know where he is?" Ash asked.

"Can we know your names first?" Drew asked haughtily. Amy decided it was best to field this. She smelled a brewing testosterone war.

"I'm Amy, this is Ash. Our friend is Gary, so _do_ you know where he is?" she asked Machala specifically.

Machala bit her lip "Sort of, we know they went through this door, but its locked, and no window, so we aren't exactly sure what to do now. I would storm in but..."

"But that is stupid. We don't know what's behind that door. It's dangerous," Drew supplied unhelpfully.

Amy narrowed her eyes and looked down in concentration. "Maybe it's dangerous but..." she sighed "It's really our only option in the given circumstances. I would rather we had Brock, Duplica and Misty as back-up but we don't have time to go find them."

"So, we're going in?" Ash asked, seeming surprised.

"Well we aren't leaving him to the Rockets!" Amy snapped. They looked at each other. They seriously needed a plan.

*****

Gary stirred and woke in a small, dimly lit room. He was in a hard wooden chair and it appeared his hands were bound behind him. This didn't look good. Suddenly a bright light bulb was shining in his face.

"Hey, what is this?" Gary snapped and a dark laughter answered him. It sent a chill up his spine.

"Shut up Bill," the laugher grunted and a big hand slapped him across the face.

"What are you talking about? I'm not Bill!" Gary snapped, wincing at his bruising cheek.

"Yeah right. Then why were you using his invitation?" the guy laughed.

"He gave it to me! Me and my- my friend helped him out and he couldn't go anyway so he gave his invites to us!" Gary snapped.

"Hey um, Cecil? This kid's got a Pokedex ID and it says he's Gary Oak," another voice joined form behind him.

"Gary Oak? You related to Prof. Oak?" Cecil said gruffly, apparently undeterred by discovering he did not in fact have Bill.

"Uh, yeah he's my grandpa..."" Gary said slowly.

Cecil laughed. "Well then, you might not be much use on your own, but you'll make a great hostage. Old Prof. Oak'll do anything to save his own, and Bill'll tell that old coot anything. So no prob. Lou, go get Bud, tell him who we've got."

"Don't you mean Barnaby?" Lou asked.

"Uh, yeah, sure, whatever, just go get him."

"Right boss," Lou said and charged out the door. Right into Amy, Ash, Drew and Machala. "Hey, what're you-" Lou started but Machala cut him off.

"GET HIM!" she yelled and the four kids tackled him to the ground. He was out cold in seconds and they stormed into the room.

"What the hell-?!" Cecil asked thoroughly startled. Gary squinted in the dim light and made out the shapes of Amy and Ash.

"You guys sure took your time, where're the others?" Gary asked as Ash, Drew and Machala started battling Cecil who had released his Arcanine and Machoke. Ash sent forward his Pikachu, while Drew let loose a Rosalia and Machala sent out a Houndoom to Amy's awe. She was too busy untying Gary to comment on it but she soon got through the knots. Gary flexed his arms and got out of the chair looking eager to fight but Cecil had returned his Pokémon and ran out of the room in a cloud of smoke that had suddenly spilt from a small ball he held in his hand.

"Come on, we've got to follow him!" Gary said started to leave but Amy grabbed his shoulder.

"Wait! Do you have your Pokémon? Did they take anything from you?" she asked. Gary shoved his hand frantically in his pocket, as Drew calmly grabbed the stuff off the nearby table along with Gary's bag and handed it to him. He took it and then they hurried out but Cecil was nowhere to be seen.

"It's no good, let's go find the others. We may need the reinforcements," Amy said knowledgably. Gary looked ready to say he didn't think there was time but everyone else was onboard so he kept quiet.

*****

Soon they had met up with Misty, Brock and Duplica in the main room, introduced them to Drew and Machala hurriedly and explained the situation. They listened with rapt attention.

"Well we've got to tell everyone!" Duplica said confidently.

"No that'd cause a panic. We STILL don't know how many there are or if they actually are in control of the ship. All we know is that 2 were dressed as crew members," Brock said looking disheartened.

"Well we have to think of something," Machala said looking around at the other trainers in the room, wondering which were innocent and which were Rockets undercover. Amy fell into deep thought, closing her eyes. She opened them and looked at each member of the group in careful turn.

"I think... we're going to have to let Team Rocket make the first move. That is our only choice. Right now we will stay together. We will move about the ship enjoying the party. But we will be on guard. When they move to attack, we will fight back. Also it would be best for each of us to have one Pokémon free of its Pokeball in case we need help fast," she explained slowly.

Gary looked furious. "So we're just going to sit back and wait?"

"She didn't say that!" Ash snapped.

Misty sighed, "I don't think there's another choice right now to be honest."

They looked at each other knowing she was right and not liking it one bit.

*****

And so the group wandered about. Isis with Amy, Socrates with Gary, Rosalia with Drew, Houndoom with Machala, Zubat with Brock, Staryu with Misty and of course, Ditto and Pikachu with Duplica and Ash. They began their rounds. Not 5 minutes into it though Team Rocket made its move. Gun shots were heard and several crew members and guests threw off their costumes and stood on tables making a big show of waving vacuums around.

"Well at least they were quick about it," Machala sighed.

"What`s with the vacuums?" Ash queried to no one in particular.

Drew shrugged. "Guns were overused perhaps?"

"Hey, shut up!" snapped a gravelly voice and Amy turned to find Butch. Cassidy was nowhere in sight.

"It's Bart!" Gary shouted pointing at him. Amy elbowed him.

"You mean Butch."

"Oh right," Gary shrugged. Amy could still not figure out why no one could remember this guy's name.

"Right, well..." Butch trailed off.

"So where's Cassidy? Did she ditch you?" Gary asked crossing his arms. The other guests were being herded by rockets from around the ship into the main room. Suddenly the boat tossed a bit in the waves. A voice from the captain, who seemed oblivious to all that was occurring on his ship, told them they seemed to have headed into a storm.

"Oh great," Misty groaned.

"So where's Cassidy?" Amy asked Butch, who was trying to supervise Rocket Grunts.

"Huh? She's over at Cinnabar Isla... I mean, um... SHUT UP!" he growled and more Grunts came and hustled them into the crowd. Duplica looked ready to fight them off, but Machala grabbed her shoulder and shook her head. Too many for them to fight. The ship lurched again.

"Oh no..." Brock groaned clutching his stomach. The girls and Drew hurriedly edged away from Brock but Ash and Gary didn't get it. The ship lurched again. Brock lurched into Ash and Gary. Then they got it. All over them.

"Awe gross!" Gary whined trying to shake it off him. Ash looked mortified for a second and then stared at Gary before starting into wild laughter.

"Sorry guys," Brock moaned from the floor where he had fallen.

Butch started yelling at the crowd from is megaphone. "Okay, now that you're all here, you can put all your Pokémon in their Pokeballs and hand them over to us."

"No way!"

"You're crazy!"

"We aren't just going to hand them over!"

Cries went up through the crowd until Butch yelled over top "THEN WE'LL TAKE THEM FROM YOU!!!"

Vacuums were switched on, and the mystery of them was solved, they started sucking up Pokeballs from the crowd. Amy and the others quickly zipped up their pockets that held their Pokémon, and each held onto the Pokémon they had out.

"This is just stupid, we're all Pokémon trainers aren't we?" Machala suddenly yelled over the roar. They looked at each other. She was right. Amy smiled. She pulled out the Pokeball that held Quasar.

"GO!" she yelled as the Wartortle appeared in a burst of light.

"Hit Butch's mega phone so it gets over here!" she told her Pokémon who nodded. The others stared bewildered as he hit his mark. Butch shouted something presumably obscene as his megaphone flew from his grip into the air. A couple more well aimed jets of water and a very good catch from Amy later and the megaphone was in her grasp. She switched it on and yelled into it, blaring over the crowd. "GET YOUR POKEMON OUT OF YOUR POKEBALLS AND FIGHT! DO YOU WANT THEM CAPTURED BY THESE GOONS OR SOMETHING? " She sounded so angry that even the Rockets looked at her stunned. Heck, everybody did.

"WELL?!"

That snapped them out of it. Butch leaped towards Amy, presumably to get his megaphone back. Ash and Gary both made to stop him at the same time and it caused a 3-headed collision. They all landed on the floor and Butch proceeded to scream about how gross Brock's lunch was as he had gotten it all over himself from the duo that had jumped him.

Trainer by trainer, including Misty, Brock, Drew and Machala, had released all their Pokémon and were doing battle with the Rockets, liberating already stolen Pokémon, while the storm raged outside, tossing the boat...

Barely heard over the noise the captain, still oblivious, informed everyone that they should probably abandon ship as it was about to capsize. The few who heard it told the others and panic ensued. Rockets and trainers alike rushed for the deck and the lifeboats, tumbling in the rocking corridors. Amy lost sight of the others while she quickly reclaimed her Pokémon into their Pokeballs. She headed for the deck, and on the way found Drew and Machala. They were walking calmly, holding hands.

"Hey! Have you guys seen the others?" Amy asked them wildly. Drew shook his head.

"No, but I'm willing to bet they panicked. We'll help you search on deck if you want..." Drew looked at Machala who nodded.

*****

On deck it was chaos. People were running everywhere. Amy spotted Misty, Brock, Duplica and Ash sitting in one life boat looking worried. They then spotted Amy, Drew and Machala and looks of relief washed over their faces. Drew and Machala got into the raft and suddenly Jesse, James and Meowth appeared and jumped in too.

"Hey, what are you guys doing here?" Ash snapped.

"Ash, we can't leave them onboard!" Amy snapped. "Where's Gary?"

"He went back to look for you I think," Duplica told her a bit sadly.

"Ash wanted to go to but we held him back," Misty said looking at Ash like he was an idiot. Amy stared at her, then turned swiftly and headed back into the crowd.

"AMY!" Ash yelled, but she ignored him. She wasn't going to let Gary drown because he went looking for her. She found him quick enough on the other side of the deck and grabbed his arm. When he saw her he looked about to say something but Amy shook her head.

"Not now, the boat's sinking! It-" but she cut off when Gary suddenly grabbed her into a fierce hug. Most of the vomit was wiped away but he still smelled like it. It sort of ruined a possibly romantic moment and Amy grimaced, unnoticed by Gary.

"I thought you fell and hit you head or something, I-" but then he was cut off when the boat tipped heavily to one side and both of them, holding tight to each other now, fell into the sea.

*****

They came to on a chunk of wood presumably used as a raft. Amy found herself looking Brock's face. He was giving her the jaws of life. Without thinking she slapped him.

"Ouch!" Brock groaned rubbing his bruised cheek. "I think Amy's okay..." he drew back and Amy saw Machala working expertly on Gary. His eyes opened and she drew back, smiling. Amy felt a small flare of anger when she saw their lips together but it left her when the first thing Gary did was ask where Amy was. Amy waved at him, and he relaxed instantly. Amy looked about the raft and saw Ash and the others were there as well, watching. Machala crawled over to Drew and he kissed her.

"You're a couple?" Ash said shocked.

They glanced at him. "Yes," they said in unison looking a bit surprised he didn't pick up on it. It wasn't obvious but it wasn't too hard to figure out. But that was Ash. Amy giggled and looked at the horizon. Nothing but water.

"What happened? Where's the life boat?" Amy asked. Duplica excitedly filled her in on what happened. Team Rocket had tried to catch Pikachu, the life boat popped, Team Rocket blasted off with it and Ditto turned into the raft they were sitting on. Amy looked shocked at the far end and saw Ditto's smiling face looking at her. She found this weird but got over it fast. "Well, at least we're all okay," she said with a sigh of relief.

"Okay?! We're in the middle of the ocean! Things couldn't be _WORSE_! " Gary yelled. Then, suddenly, randomly, probably due to Gary using the jinxed phrase, a school of Gyrados popped out of the water and used Dragon Rage. Misty ominously explained what attack it was when she saw them prepare to use it. So it was with that everyone wound up in a vortex of water, sending them far out in the water, and managing to knock them all conveniently unconscious on the way.

_**TO BE CONTINUED...**_


	13. Lord of the Pokemon

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 13~Lord of the Pokémon**

Amy's eyes slowly fluttered open as she sat up and looked blearily around her. From the looks of things she was on some sort of beach. Carefully getting to her feet, her eyes also told her that there was no one else around. It took a moment to recall the Gyrados attack but when she did she started to panic. There was no one in sight at all, nor was there anything manmade. She checked her pockets for her Pokémon and found them securely zippered in. She then checked her bag which thankfully was still on her back and thanked the gods for waterproof lining. Everything was only a bit damp at worst. She sighed and wished she had sprung for a Pokégear when she had the chance. It would have been even better to have a PokéNav, but those were so new she'd have to have hocked everything she owned to get in its price range. As it was though, she had neither.

Amy sighed and slung her bag back over her shoulders. She started heading along the beach. She felt like it was about mid-morning so by the position of the sun she determined she was probably heading north, but she didn't care much. All she knew was that if she swept off in this direction then the others, hopefully ALL of the others, probably ended up here too. She let Isis out of her Pokeball to keep her company. After a moment's thought she also released her other Pokémon. They were happy to help her search for her friends, so off they went.

She didn't go too far when she noticed something glimmer in the sand. It looked like a shell. She knew perfectly well this wasn't the time to go shell collecting, but it was really nice. It looked to be a conch. She smiled a bit as Isis skipped over and sniffed it. Suddenly the conch moved. It turned around and revealed it had a face, ON the shell.

"Willing to bet that's a Pokémon." Amy said blinking as she drew out her Pokedex.

Her Pokedex said 'Conchola, the Conch Shell Pokémon. It is related to Corsola the Coral Pokémon in genetic structure, though Conchola is Native to the Orange Islands, while Corsola is native to the Joto Region'

Amy blinked. "But this isn't either. This little guy must have washed a long way." The Conchola, which was about as big as Amy's forearms, looked up at her questioningly.

The Pokedex went on, 'Conchola's signature move is "Horn Blare" a move only shared by the Pokémon Loudard. This attack sends a powerful blast of sound that can be heard for miles around'

Amy grinned. Sure she needed to find this others, but this Pokémon may be able to help. "Okay!" she looked at her Pokémon and her eyes settled on Avion. "Avion, go after it!" she called. Avion screeched and flew into the air, quickly diving towards the shell Pokémon. Conchola shrieked and tried to dive into the sand but Avion was too quick and hit it hard, knocking in over. It shrieked again and started to cry. Amy froze.

"Uh, uh, there there?" Amy said distressed as she knelt beside the Conchola. It looked up, teary eyed. "I'm sorry okay? You're probably a long way from home. I know, how about you come along with me? And help me find my friends?" Amy asked reaching out and picking up the Pokémon. It looked up at her and cocked its body to one side. Amy sighed. "Well either way..." she pulled out a Pokeball and tapped it on Conchola. It disappeared inside and barely shook at all before stopping. Avion landed on Amy's shoulder and peered down bewildered. "Well let's hope this'll help. Go Conchola!" she called and Conchola popped out. It seemed a bit confused.

Amy smiled wanly. "Right, well, on my team all of the Pokémon have nicknames, so I'll name you... Opal. Okay?" the Conchola blinked. Then it smiled. Amy grinned back."Okay, well, do you know Horn Blare Opal?" it nodded. "Then use it, as loud as you can!"

Conchola complied and Amy, Avion, Harmony, Quasar and Isis all clamped their hands, paws and wings over their ears as the Pokémon let loose a sound like a foghorn, so loud that it shook the trees and echoed over what Amy hoped was the whole island. Only a minute after Opal stopped did two happy yells come from nearby and Amy turned to see Pikachu and Ditto running towards her. They leapt into her arms and she squeezed them tightly. When she let them go she asked where Ash and Duplica were, but from their sad looks she determined that they had no idea.

"Well, we'll just have to find them then!" Amy said fiercely and then had Opal use another Horn Blare. It was returned by a cry from the trees that sounded like... "Misty?" Amy said in surprise and ran towards the sound, the Pokémon following closely behind her.

*****

They found Misty stuck up in a tree tangled in vines with no idea how she got there. Ditto transformed into Spearow and he and Avion flew up into the tree. Amy coached them as to which vines to Peck apart. Soon Misty was down and Amy explained about Conchola's Horn Blare. Misty cooed over the conch shell Pokémon while Amy tried to figure out what exactly to do next. She asked Misty.

"Well we have to find the others I guess, and... oh my gosh my bag!" Misty yelped realising for the first time that her red bag was gone. "It had all my Pokémon in it too!" she wailed. Amy groaned. One more thing to find.

"Well, then we had better find the others, that way we'll have more people to look. Opal, think you can manage another Horn Blare?" With the next blast of sound and another few happy shrieks, this time from Ditto again, Duplica and Brock ran into the small group of trees with Misty, Amy and the Pokémon. Duplica and Ditto hugged hard when they met up again while Brock told Amy that he still had his Pokémon but his bag, like Misty's, was not around. Therefore he apparently didn't have any of his cooking supplies. Misty seemed most perturbed by this.

"What?! But I'm starving!"

Duplica giggled, "Well there's plenty of coconuts around I'm sure..."

Amy shook her head. "There's no time for that! We still have 4 friends out there to find, not to mention Misty's Pokémon..."

"And my cooking supplies!"

Amy groaned. "Yeah. Sure. Whatever. Let's just find them! Opal, we may need another Horn Blare," she said turning to her Conchola but the Pokémon was fast asleep.

"Those couple of Horn Blares must have taken a lot out of it," Brock determined and Amy nodded sadly.

"I guess we'll have to find them the old fashioned way."

*****

Meanwhile, Gary was walking along the beach towards the South judging by the sun. His hands were stuffed into his pockets next to his four Pokeballs. He still had his bag like Amy did. Of course, he didn't know that Amy had her bag. He had heard the Horn Blare but had no idea from what direction because SOMEone was yelling at him while it was going on. BOTH times.

"Hey, I think that last horn sound came from the trees, we should look there..." Ash said from a few feet behind him. Gary clenched his fists and glared over his shoulder.

"We don't know that for sure because you yelled through it. We'd just get lost in there. At least if we follow this beach we're more likely to find a port or something."

"Unless this is a deserted island, which is far more likely with Pokémon that size..."

Gary stopped and whirled around. "NOT this again! You and that giant Pikachu. NO Pokémon can get up to the size you're describing. You were dreaming or hallucinating. So shut up and talk sense for once!"

"Look I don't want Amy to get eaten by some giant-"

"THERE IS NO GIANT POKEMON!" Gary shouted and turned on his heel, once more storming up the beach.

Ash clenched his teeth and growled, "Don't you even care about Amy enough to consider-oof!" That's when Gary leaped on Ash, tackling him to the ground and punching him in the gut.

With each punch he grunted out "Of" punch "course" punch "I" punch "care about" punch "Amy" punch "you idiot!" two punches.

Ash was gasping for breath as Gary stood up shaking with anger. Ash staggered to his feet and stared at him bewildered as Gary started talking again.

"I care about her, which is why I'm looking for a port! A port means people! People who can organize a search party! All we've found is your friend's bags and no sign of Amy at all, we need help," Ash frowned but nodded in grudging agreement. That was about the point when a movement in the bushes and a flash of white caught Gary's eye. A grunt issued from them and Gary quickly drew Slasher's Pokeball, releasing the Raticate inside. It dove into the bush and yanked out a squealing little black Pokémon with a pure white pearl balanced on his head. Gary reached for his Pokedex, but Ash got his out first. According to it, the Pokémon was a Spoink but the picture Ash had was of a purple Spoink with a pink pearl. Gary smiled.

"Wow that's so cool, I'm going to catch it!" Gary smirked and Slasher held the psychic pig Pokémon still as it wriggled.

Ash pulled out his own Pokeball. "No way, I'm gonna catch it! Pokeball go!" He yelled throwing it at the Spoink, but Gary blocked it.

"My Raticate caught it; I'm going to train it. Got it Ashy-boy?" Gary said quickly demoting himself in that name calling from thinking individual to a snot-nosed kid picking on the neighbour boy.

"Well how is this helping Amy?" Ash snapped but Gary didn't seem to hear him. He was busy barking orders for Slasher to fight the Pokémon. Its Psywave was powerful, but Slasher fought through it and soon the Spoink lay in a faint. One throw from Gary and it was safely in a Pokeball. Gary picked it up and praised Slasher for a job well done.

"Well, the Spoink is mine; I think I'll call it... Roger," he smiled.

"Roger?" Ash asked confused.

"Yeah. Got a problem with that?" Gary sneered. Ash shook his head.

*****

Amy and the others were all sitting around a small fire Amy had managed to make by striking a couple pieces of flint. They hadn't found Ash, Gary, Machala or Drew, nor did they find either Misty or Brock's bags. Things weren't looking too good and Pikachu seemed extremely depressed.

"Well, on the bright side, by tomorrow I'll bet Opal will be able to use a couple more Horn Blares and we'll find them," Duplica said putting her hand on Amy's shoulder. Amy smiled back, trying to seem reassured. She wished she really could be, but fear clutched her belly and she knew it wouldn't go away until she knew Gary was alright...

_'And Ash,'_ she thought suddenly to herself as if the thought that all her worry stemmed from Gary's absence was completely repugnant. In any case, neither were here nor were Drew or Machala. Things weren't looking good. Suddenly they heard a huge roar and they all jumped and scrambled to their feet at once.

"What was that?" Misty cried. Ditto buried itself into Duplica's chest and Pikachu, missing his partner, clutched Amy's leg in fear. Then the biggest Venesaur on the face of the planet lumbered over the trees straight towards them. Needless to say, they all screamed and ran for it.

*****

Gary and Ash, shivering out on the beach, heard the roar and screams and ran towards them. When they saw Amy and the others they were nearly run over, but Gary had a chance to see the relief break over Amy's face at the sight of them in the split second before the group grabbed the other two boys' arms and ran them away from the Venesaur who was sending out monster razor leaves in their direction. They darted into a nearby cave and Ash, breathing hard, managed to puff out an 'I told you so'. That awarded him another almost tackle from Gary and would have really gotten him one had Amy and Duplica not held the spiky haired teen back. Pikachu was glad to see its trainer however and Brock and Misty were thrilled that Ash had brought them their bags.

"Oh, by the way, I caught a weird coloured Spoink. Check it out, I named it Roger," Gary said releasing the black pig Pokémon. Amy squealed and hugged it, saying it was adorable. Gary felt a slight blush creep into his cheeks but the cave was dim, so it went unnoticed.

"And I caught a Conchola! I named it Opal!" Amy said releasing the shell Pokémon. Gary and Ash were impressed. Ash yanked out his Pokedex immediately and they puzzled, as Amy had, about how it got so far from the Orange Islands. No answer forthcoming they decided to get some sleep, after Brock made a fantastic dinner of course.

*****

Amy woke with a snap the next morning to a screeching sound from deep in the cave. She struggled to her feet, as did most of the others, save for Ash and Gary who Amy gave a swift smack to the head each. They had to get up, because what was headed for them from the interior of the cave was a giant sized Moltres!

"RUN!" Duplica yelled and they naturally did. Amy personally wondered if the running would ever stop as they found themselves heading into the giant Pikachu Ash had spotted the day before and had to change direction. Soon they had not only a giant Pikachu and Moltres on their trail, but the Venesaur, and a Kabutops to boot. Lucky for them they collided and there was a sound of scratching... metal? Brock turned around and yelled at the other to stop and look. To their amazement they saw that Moltres and Kabutops were on the ground, opened up with grey bits lying around them like a pile of scrap metal.

"They're... robots?" Ash said in wonder.

"Well no duh genius," Gary said grumpily, as if it had been obvious. Then there was a much more hospitable from their right.

"I see them! I see them!" it sounded like... Machala? She appeared through a gap in the trees, Drew beside her and Officer Jenny close behind.

"Do you kids have any idea how much it'll cost to fix those robots?" Jenny snapped seeing the damage. The other two robots seemed to have shut down for now.

"They were chasing us!" Duplica said wide eyed.

Drew groaned, "We found a port on the far north end of the beach and got a search party out. This is Pokémon Island, a major tourist attraction. The robots were sent out to find you. But you kept running around..."

"The Venesaur attacked us, it sent out razor leaves," Misty said as the Venesaur came back to life and attacked again, but this time they saw what the leaves were... packages full of food supplies. Weird, but would have useful at the time.

"Well I feel silly," Amy sighed. Gary and Ash glanced at her and shrugged. At least they could get off this island now and get back to training.

*****

Later that day Drew, Machala, Gary, Duplica and Amy were on the boat ready to depart for Lavender Town. Coincidently this was also Drew and Machala's destination. But Ash, Misty and Brock weren't anywhere to be seen.

"Where are they?" Duplica asked for the 15th time from on deck. The horn sounded and the boat started to move just as Ash and the others appeared, waving their hands in panic.

"They aren't going to make it," Amy sighed.

"Too bad they only send out the Lavender boat every three days," Machala said sounding concerned.

"Oh well, you aren't supposed to travel with him anyway right Amy?" Gary smirked and Amy glared, but half-heartedly. She was tired after all.

"Well, guess we're going to Lavender. Do they have a gym there?" Duplica asked mildly interested.

"No, but they do have the greatest Pokémon graveyard in the world. And my cousin's there too!" Machala said smiling.

Amy smiled in return. Time to get this adventure back on track.

_((Joyful Note: Yes. I made up the pokemon Conchola. This was purely to reference Lord of the Flies which was the book I was reading in class while writing this part originally 2 and a half years ago. Next part is one of my favourites, so I hope you enjoy it when it comes out!))_


	14. Violet Lights in Pokemon Tower

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 14~Violet Lights in Pokémon Tower**

Amy stared out into the fog as the ferry approached Lavender Town's small port. Isis was resting on her shoulder. She was fairly certain Gary was panicking and looking for her, she had sort of left for the deck without telling anyone, but she saw no reason to tell him where she was just yet. She knew he was looking for her because Duplica was with her too, as she had been recruited for the search party. She and Ditto also looked into the gloomy fog.

"It's sort of creepy isn't it? And what Machala said about it having the greatest Pokémon _graveyard_ in the world?" Duplica said softly. Amy nodded.

"Totally, I've had shivers going up my spine since this fog rolled in. They said we'd be arriving soon but I haven't seen a lighthouse," Amy observed while squinting into the clouds. Then she noticed a soft purple hue amid the grey. As the boat moved forward the purple grew more vivid.

"Do you think that's the lighthouse?" Duplica asked.

Amy frowned. "I don't know; a purple light in a lighthouse?" As they drew closer a shadow appeared beneath the light, implying an actual building. Closer still and Duplica let out a shriek and hid behind Amy, understandably because the building looked like mix between a prison and a graveyard gate, not to mention the windows and doorway looked like a glaring face. The light came from the eyes and the mist made some light reflect back onto the structure, resulting in an extremely terrifying visual. Amy did feel a bit creeped out by it, but not to the degree Duplica was. In fact, she sort of the liked the creepy peace that had settled over them. It was all so quiet...

"Amy, there you are! Woah that is one creepy lighthouse," Gary's voice came up from behind them and Amy jumped. The creepy peace was broken and now Gary was telling some sort of cliché ghost story meant to scare them but although Duplica, Ditto and Isis were getting steadily more freaked to Gary's delight, Amy had recovered from her initial shock and went back to staring at the Tower completely ignoring him. Not that he really noticed. When Gary had finished with yelling boo, causing Duplica and the Pokémon to shriek and Amy to jump again, Drew and Machala finally made their appearance on deck.

"So, I see you've seen Pokémon Tower, though it's hard to miss with Violet working the lights!" Machala said smiling.

"Violet? Is that your cousin or...?" Amy asked finally turning from the hypnotic shore as it came slowly into view.

"It's her cousin. She's actually taken over the Tower fairly recently, the graveyard is behind it. Trainers all over come to pay their respects to their dead Pokémon," Drew said looking out past Amy to the shoreline as well.

"Wait, Pokemon DIE?!" Duplica was shocked beyond all belief at this revelation. Who knew?

"Vi's been trying to get a Pokémon League sanctioned gym there for ages too, but no dice as of yet for some reason. She's a ghost Pokémon trainer and she's really good," Machala said with a shrug as the boat docked. "Hey, you guys wouldn't want to do some sightseeing here before you head out would you? Vi, Drew and I could be your guides..."

Gary looked about to protest, so Amy quickly said that would be great and that she loved seeing the sites. Duplica looked less enthusiastic about staying in the creepy town longer then absolutely necessary. Isis decided to retreat into her Pokeball too.

"Why the purple light anyway?" Gary asked Machala as they headed for the plank off the boat.

She simply smiled and replied with "You'll see."

*****

About 15 minutes later the gang was ringing the door bell at the base of Pokémon Tower. It sounded like a gong and echoed all around the deserted front courtyard. They hadn't seen a living soul around them since the boat but then, the mist blotted most things out. The door opened and a rather short girl poked her face out of the dark on the other side. She saw Amy, Duplica and Gary first and looked confused. Then she saw Drew and Machala and grinned, running forward to hug her cousin.

"Mickey! You're here!" the girl Amy could only assume was Violet, an accurate name considering her violet hair and purple/black attire.

"Mickey?" Duplica said smiling cheekily.

Drew smirked. "It's just her nickname. Right Mickey?"

Machala sent him a micro-glare "A nickname used only by Vi. So don't even start Drewbi," Drew blushed madly and looked away. Machala whispered to Amy that Drewbi was what his mum calls him. Amy giggled.

"So, who're these guys?" Violet asked Machala, looking pointedly at Amy, Duplica and Gary.

"Well I'm Amy, and these are Gary and Duplica," Amy explained gesturing to her friends.

"Ditto!" Ditto exclaimed happily.

"EEK!" Duplica screamed out of nowhere and ducked behind Amy and Gary, holding her Ditto in front of her face. A Gastly had suddenly materialized in front of Violet. Drew, Gary and Amy merely stared at it as Machala squealed and hugged the now semi-solid Pokémon.

"Dark Smoke! It's so great to see you!" Machala said letting the ghost Pokémon go. It laughed and retreated to Violet who gave him a hug as well.

"Yup, he's been looking forward to seeing you for weeks!" Violet giggled.

Ditto hopped out of Duplica's still goose bump covered arms and looked closely at Dark Smoke. Then it glowed and Transformed. Soon there were two Gastly floating around. Duplica wasn't sure how she felt about that but Ditto seemed to enjoy the feeling of being so light. He and Dark Smoke, who was thrilled as well at having a new playmate, started flying in spirals up and down the huge tower.

"And Drew, great seeing you too of course," Violet smiled. Drew smiled easily back.

Violet looked closely at Gary a second and then squealed in delight, much to his surprise. "I knew it! You're Gary Oak aren't you?"

Gary smirked and struck a truly annoyingly stuck-up pose. "Why yes, I am."

Violet squealed again. "That is so cool! I know all about you, cause I know all about Prof. Oak from my dad, they worked together on ghost Pokémon research for the Pokedex. He came here, and he showed me all these pictures of his grandson Gary, you're even cuter in person!" Violet winked and Gary blushed, though not unhappily. Amy felt a twinge of anger and shot a micro glare at Violet who just happened to turn enough to see. Amy immediately looked away but Violet didn't.

"Oh I'm sorry, are his girlfriend?" Violet asked smiling apologetically. Amy drew breath to issue her common response when Gary piped up.

"No, we're just friends. Right Amy? So, are we getting a tour or not?" Gary said with a smile. Violet smiled happily and grabbed Gary's hand. Amy felt like someone had grabbed her stomach and started squeezing.

"Right, let's go!" Violet said pulling Gary inside. Drew and Machala glanced at each other, then a slight glance at Amy, and they followed. Duplica turned to Amy and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Calm down Amy, you know he loves you, he's probably just trying to make you jealous."

"I'm not jealous!" Amy snapped and stormed inside. Duplica blinked.

"I didn't say you were; I said that's what Gary was trying to... oh forget it," she sighed. "Come on Ditto!" she called before heading after the others. Ditto stopped in midair and Dark Smoke smacked into him. It looked dazed a minute and then the two Pokémon hurried inside after their trainers.

*****

Violet showed them up the stairs and around the tower. It was elegant, but dark. Everywhere were Gastly, Haunter, Gengar, Misdeveus and other ghost types. They continuously popped up, freaking out Duplica to no end, but Amy hardly noticed because all her attention seemed unwittingly drawn to the fact that Violet hardly let go of Gary's hand for a second since this 'tour' began. At last however they reached the top of the tower, behind the eyelike windows. This close up, they could see each eye window had a purple glowing orb full of green eyes. They were shooting purple light out onto the sea.

"What are they?" Duplica asked holding Ditto. She had grabbed it out of the air early on so she'd have something to hide behind as the ghost materialized without warning.

"They're Spiritombs. Really rare around here, you hardly see them outside the Sinnoh region. Heck, you hardly see them IN the Sinnoh region," Drew replied, his arm loosely around Machala's waist.

"Yup, they were my dad's before he passed the lighthouse onto me. I've never actually been far outside Lavender Town. I've always wanted to travel but I'm needed here. Spiritomb are ghost Pokémon too and they've both learned Flash. So, here they are running the lighthouse," Violet said smiling and, as Amy found herself increasingly angered by, still held Gary's hand.

"They look really cool, are all the ghost Pokémon here yours?" Gary asked.

Violet shook her head. "Nope, only the Spiritombs and Dark Smoke. The rest are wild. What, you want to try to catch one?" To Amy's secret glee, Gary ripped his hand from Violet's and ran down the stairs. After all, Violet's was a rather silly question.

*****

An hour later Gary finally found a ghost Pokémon willing to stay visible and battle. It was a Haunter. Before this there was a rather humorous montage of Gary running at vanishing lights and having pies fly at his face form nowhere. Silly ghost types. Duplica seemed to relax when she started to realise that these were just Pokemon, not actual ghosts and therefore she didn't need to be afraid. This wasn't the graveyard or anything.

"Okay!" Gary said gripping his Pokeball tightly and wiping pie filling from his cheek. He threw the ball and released his new Pokémon, Roger the Spoink.

Haunter laughed as the black and white Spoink hopped in front of it, grunting excitedly at its first battle. "Okay, let's start with Confusion!" Gary called. The pig Pokémon sent waves of reddish light towards Haunter who flew back slightly to avoid them. It then sent a jet of black light at Roger who bounced up to dodge it.

"That's Nightshade, Gary be careful!" Violet squealed joyously from the sidelines. Amy clenched her fists and broke into a strained grin. Duplica was standing next to her and edged slightly away from her psychotic expression. Machala and Drew noticed as well and were unsure what to make of it.

"Um, are you okay Amy?" Drew whispered reaching over to her slightly.

"It's just Violet being Violet, don't let her work you up..." Machala whispered.

"Work me up? Why would she work me up? She's not doing anything of the kind," Amy said her grin growing wider as her nails dug deeper into the palm of her hands.

Duplica stepped in at this point. "Amy, we're leaving later today or tomorrow and odds are he'll never see Violet again. She's going after him and he's just soaking up attention. We'll be leaving soon. There's nothing to worry about."

"Ditto," Ditto agreed.

"I'm not worried about anything," Amy said but she couldn't hide the instant relaxing of her fists and grin into a natural smile. She forgot they were leaving Violet here. There was no trouble.

"Psybeam, Roger!" Gary called loudly as his Pokémon let lose a multicoloured beam of light at the ghost Pokémon before it. It screeched in pain and floated towards the floor. Gary threw a Pokeball. It shook, then stilled. Gary was ecstatic. "Did you see that? I caught it! I caught that Haunter! I'm naming it Casper. Let's see Ashy boy catch a ghost Pokémon, he wouldn't come close!" Gary victory danced and for once Amy refrained from cringing in shame. She even continued her easy smile.

Until Violet grabbed his hands and started dancing with him, Dark Smoke floating happily with her. Now she was angry again. Machala seemed to sense this and clapped her hands loudly

"ALRIGHT everybody, who wants to see the graveyard?" she called. Duplica looked horrified anew so she revised her question. "On second thought, who wants to see the town? We could visit the Pokémon Orphanage; I remember how much they love visitors there!"

Violet stopped dancing and smiled at Machala "Great idea Mickey! Let's go!" she grabbed Gary's hand again and raced away, Dark Smoke bobbing happily behind her all the way.

"Great. Let's go," Amy said, her psychotic grin back as she marched after them.

Duplica turned to Machala. "Can't you do something about Violet?"

Machala smiled wanly. "If I catch her alone I'll try to talk to her, but I can't guarantee she'll listen."

*****

The gang headed out of the Tower and headed down the streets of the small town. The mist had mostly lifted but there was still a hazy feel in the air. Few people were on the streets as they came to a rundown sort of building. The paint was faded and peeling but Amy could make out that it said Mr. Fuji's Pokémon Center.

"It's a Pokémon Center?" Gary asked. Violet had released his hand when they got outside and Amy had discreetly slid up between him and Violet and was secretly quite pleased with herself for it.

Drew decided to field this question. "It used to be a Pokémon Center because the Town was so small but a few years ago a Nurse Joy started an actual Pokémon Center here, so this became a home for orphaned and abandoned Pokémon."

"Oh, that's great! Wait hang on, the abandoned Pokémon isn't great but the idea of a place for those Pokémon to go is!" Duplica said smiling.

"We picked up on that," Amy said, turning toward her. She had cooled down since she had placed herself between Gary and Violet, deciding to submit to the obvious fact that she was jealous, even if she would never admit it to anyone else.

Violet went up to the door and knocked loudly "Hey Mr. Fuji! Mr. Fuji! It's me Violet! Mickey and Drew are here too, and guess what? So's Gary Oak!" she squealed and Amy noticed Gary smirk. She felt another flare of anger but it died down for some reason when the door opened and Gary went up to be introduced to the old man who opened it. She saw him touch Violet's shoulder.

_'No way, he doesn't actually like her does he?'_ Amy thought to herself, suddenly feeling her stomach plummet.

*****

Inside, Amy temporarily forgot her distress. There were Pokémon all over the place! Most of them were babies and soon Amy and Duplica were cooing over a baby Cubone, which was apparently the newest arrival.

"How'd this little guy get orphaned?" Amy asked picking it up and cuddling it.

Mr. Fuji sighed. "It's a sad story. He came to us from a girl who said she found a Marowak and her child, this Cubone, fighting off Team Rocket. Marowak tried to save her child but she was hit just a little too hard by the Rocket it cracked her skull. The girl said she used her Pokémon to fight off Team Rocket but she couldn't care for another Pokémon, especially one so young. She brought Cubone here."

Gary was currently being used as a climbing tree by a couple of baby twin Aipoms and was unable to comment. Machala decided to take this opportunity to speak with her cousin and dragged Vi away as Amy digested this information.

"So Team Rocket killed this Cubone's mother? That's horrible," Amy whispered. Duplica nodded in agreement.

Mr. Fuji nodded as well. "And what's worse, his mother's ghost is still not at rest. I've seen it in the graveyard the past few nights. I tried to show it that its baby was okay but she didn't seem to think living here was good enough for her child."

Drew raised an eyebrow. "So her ghost is in the graveyard? Haven't you asked Violet to help put it to rest?"

Mr. Fuji nodded. "I have, but she told me to wait for you two to come help."

Drew sighed. "I wonder when she planned on telling us about this."

Gary had shaken the Aipoms and had come over to listen to the conversation. Violet and Machala had returned as well, Violet looked haughty and Machala looking exasperated.

"You can put ghosts to rest?" Gary asked Violet looking... impressed?

Violet blushed and nodded, seeming to forget her haughtiness. "Yes, well it's hard with fewer people for the séance. Hey, you should stay the night and help us contact the spirit of Marowak!" Violet suggested happily. Duplica looked sick but Gary was quick to agree. Amy found herself spiralling into depression and couldn't find the heart to argue. When they all went into the kitchen to make plans Drew and Machala stayed back a minute.

"I thought you were going to get her to lay off Gary?" Drew asked Machala in a whisper.

Machala groaned. "I tried but she said that Gary had said himself that he and Amy were just friends and that Amy doesn't own him. You know how stubborn she is."

Drew frowned. "Amy looks like she's given up. I find that somehow disheartening."

"Me too. I liked it better when she was angry," Machala said, shoulders slumped.

*****

That night they sat in a circle holding hands in the graveyard over the grave of the Marowak. Ditto had transformed back into Gastly and he and Dark Smoke flew around the circle, as did Casper. Amy at first had retired to sit between Duplica and Machala, but somehow Machala had worked it so she wound up next to Gary holding his hand with Violet on his other side. Ash couldn't bring herself to look at him, and Duplica, who was still at Amy's other side, suspected that Gary had noticed her lack of eye contact. Mr. Fuji held Drew and Duplica's hands. Cubone had been brought as well and sat in Amy's lap, undaunted by any emotions running through the circle and seeming aglow with anticipation, as though he knew what he was about to see again.

Violet was to speak to the spirit as apparently she was a medium. "Marowak, hear us now. We gather here at your deathbed to ask you what keeps you here on Earth. You know your baby is safe, yet you do not rest. What can we do to ease your journey into the beyond?"

_  
'She's laying it on thick,' _Duplica though to herself. She wondered if Amy was thinking that too or if she had totally lost her ability to think such thoughts. She looked pretty upset with the whole situation. Duplica was unsure whether making her hold Gary's hand when Violet was on his other side was such a great idea after all. Duplica was driven fiercely from these thoughts as a shimmering white vapour appeared in the center of the circle and she let out a short scream. She did not like ghosts. She did not. How had they talked her into this?

"MAROOO!!!" The ghost of Marowak materialized. It stood and turned, gazing at all in the circle. Her eyes settled on her baby who cried out and reached toward her but she drew back, telling it not to approach. Cubone stopped and Amy felt wet drops on her knees. It was Cubone's tears. She felt tears in her own, not only for Cubone but for herself. She felt horrible for crying for herself in this situation which of course only brought more tears. She knew she was spiralling. She had to get out of this. She felt a sharp chill shoot through her leg and looked up to see Marowak touching her knee lightly. It looks deeply into her eyes and she suddenly saw what Marowak had seen just before death. She saw the dark figures approaching. She heard their laughter and jeers. They wanted Cubone's skull to sell. Cubone cowered. Then the fatal crack on the head. Blackness. Then the scene changed and she was floating. She saw her son, alive. Safe, but without a mother.

_'Take care of my son, and I shall rest in peace,'_ Marowak's words echoed in Amy's mind.

"I will. But, what is his name? Do Pokémon name themselves? I don't know, I just usually have names for each of my Pokémon, to make them special..." Amy whispered breathlessly. Cubone looked up at her confused.

Marowak looked at her carefully. _'Pokémon have names in ways that humans cannot understand. If you wish to call my son something, I trust you will make a good choice,_' the words echoed again and the spirit flashed before flying up into the sky. Everyone was staring at Amy. They had all heard Marowak's words. Violet looked a bit put out and she bit her lip.

"I thought she'd choose someone, but I thought I'd be... well anyway," she shook her head. "Congrats." Everyone dropped their hands and Amy's arms wrapped around Cubone, hugging it to her.

"So, um, what're you gonna name it?" Gary asked. Amy looked up into Gary's eyes for the first time since that afternoon and smiled.

"I'm going to name him... Gabriel. I'm not sure why, but it feels right," Cubone had fallen asleep now. She gathered him up and stood.

Violet stood too. "This is so unfair!" she giggled. "You guys get to keep traveling and I'm stuck here! Oh Mickeeeey...."

Machala looked weary "What is iiiit?"

"You're coming for a while right? Can't you just watch the tower so I can go with them?" Violet begged. Machala stared at her.

"No!" she snapped.

"No," Gary said firmly. Violet stared at him. Amy stared as well, still holding the sleeping Gabriel.

"B-but why not?" Violet asked shakily.

"Well for one thing that's a really unfair thing to put on your cousin. For another thing, I'm just not interested in you."

"Why not?" Violet demanded looking really pissed off all of a sudden. Gary paused, trying to find words to explain this. He glanced at Amy whose heart sped up a little. Amy took a breath. She was going to step up here. She wondered if she was going to regret this.

"You want to know why he's not interested?" she said stepping up beside Gary who looked absolutely shocked at her outburst.

"Um..." Violet said biting her lip hard.

"Because," Amy said softly as Duplica felt a shiver run down her spine. "I'm his," her voice cracked, "I'm his girlfriend."

Duplica screamed and clapped excitedly. Machala and Drew grinned and the ghost Pokémon flying above them danced happily in the air. Amy felt a blush creep into her cheeks. She stole a tiny glance at Gary. He looked stunned and then he grinned widely.

"I knew you were jealous."

Amy frowned furiously, still blushing. "Shut up. Okay I was. Are you happy?"

"Yes."

"Shut up," Amy looked away. Violet stared.

"But you said..." Violet said sounding heartbroken. Gary looked embarrassed.

"I uh, look I'm sorry. You're nice but I've liked Amy a whole lot longer. I can't just leave her for you," he wrapped his arm around Amy's waist and pulled her to him. Amy blushed harder and pulled back a little. Gary frowned.

"I thought you'd finally broken down?"

Amy shook her head. "Only sort of. Look I-I'm not really ready for doing anything fast. I'm just... not okay? Don't go grabbing and pulling me like that, I just, I'm not ready! Can't you wait?"

Gary groaned, closed his eyes, and rubbed his temples. "I guess I waited this long..." he sighed a relaxed. "I can take it slow."

Duplica grinned. Amy still had control of the situation and it was time to get some sleep. Tomorrow they were moving on again.


	15. Saffron City Takeover

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 15~Return of the Mutants, Saffron City Takeover**

Duplica, Ditto, Gary, Gabriel the Cubone and Amy had left behind Drew, Machala and a tearful Violet back in Lavender Town and were now headed for Saffron City. It was true that when Gary and Amy had tried to pass into the city from Cerulean City the gates had been closed, but it had been a while so Amy was sure they had to be open again. There was no way the guards would have them closed for over a week. Besides, she was a bit too preoccupied to worry about Saffron City being closed.

Gary had been trying to get her to hold his hand since they left; perhaps he had been spoiled by Violet's constant grip. He had the opportunities since Gabriel seemed to prefer walking to being carried by Amy. Amy had refused, insisting that she may have said that she was his girlfriend, but that was to shake off Violet. Gary didn't seem to believe her though and was now trying to grab her hand whenever she let her guard down. Duplica and Ditto found this extremely amusing and Ditto had even transformed into a clipboard with a tally chart. So far it was Amy 12, Gary 2. Duplica sipped her iced tea. She had gotten a 6-pack from the store before leaving Lavender.

Luckily Saffron wasn't far from Lavender, and they reached the gate within the hour. Not so lucky however was the fact that the barrier was indeed still up. A guard stood at his post watching them approach. When they got close enough he told them to halt.

"Saffron City is under quarantine. No one is allowed in or out," he said in a raspy voice. Amy tilted her head to one side.

"You sound thirsty," she said innocently. Gabriel cocked his head and leaned against Amy's leg.

The guard looked a little taken aback. "Why, yes, but I'm allowed to go get a drink. I've been here an hour..." he saw Duplica's iced tea. "Hey can I get a sip of that?"

Duplica shook her head and crushed the can. "Nope, sorry, it's empty."

The guard sighed. "Figures."

"Hey, why's the whole city under quarantine anyway? It's been like that over a week now. How're you getting supplies in?" Gary asked, for once asking a valid question. Amy was impressed.

"I'm not at liberty to discuss that," the guard said stiffly.

Duplica smiled and drew another iced tea from her bag. "If you answer our questions I'll give you some iced tea, how's that sound?"

The guard stared a second, looked like he was going to decline, and then broke down. "Okay!" He grabbed it and down it in 3 gulps. He wiped his mouth with his hand and sighed happily.

"So why's it under quarantine?" Amy asked now that he was done.

"Huh? Oh, they get helicopters to bring stuff in. I don't know exactly why it's quarantined, I think some scientists are doing a research experiment or something."

"But we need to get the Marsh Badge from the gym here. Isn't there any way you could let us by...?" Amy pled. The guard shook his head firmly.

"No way. Besides, the gym leader's gone on some sort of training excursion for a year. She'll be back in a couple months. They'll probably open the boarders for her, she's scary. I hope she doesn't come back in this way," the guard said with a sigh.

Duplica thought for a moment, looking at him closely. "That wasn't the whole truth that you just told us," she said, narrowing her eyes.

The guard looked a little freaked out. "What are you talking about? Of course it's the truth! Why would I lie?" Gary and Amy looked at Duplica, confused.

"I see that cloth in your pocket. It has a red 'R'." She leaned forward and grabbed it. He tried to snatch it back but Ditto smack into his, tackling him to the ground. Gabriel clapped gleefully and jumped on the guard as well.

"It's nothing! My name's Rodney!" he grunted as Ditto jumped up and down on him.

"Mm-hmm." Amy hummed sceptically inspection the cloth. It was sweaty, but she ignored that. Inside on the wash-tag was the name 'Liam'. She waved it in front of the guard's face.

"Okay fine! Maybe I'm a Rocket but you ain't getting in here! The boss has claimed this city as his base!" Gary took this opportunity to release Casper the Haunter. He had it prepare to use Nightshade in front of the Rocket who began sweating profusely.

"Who exactly is this boss?" Gary asked bending over the Rocket.

"I don't know his name!" the Rocket yelled in terror, "I'm just a grunt okay? Only executives are allowed to have that kind of information! I don't even know what our business here is, I'm just supposed to guard!"

"Gary, he's telling the truth," Duplica said stepping in. She had been watching the Rocket carefully through his short speech. "Just have Casper put him to sleep with Hypnosis."

Gary nodded to his Haunter. The ghost Pokémon relinquished the dark energy of Nightshade and instead pumped purple waves of light into the Rocket's eyes. The Rocket fought at first, but succumbed and fell into a deep sleep.

"Alright," Amy muttered, running her hand through her hair. She went over to the window at the other end of the gatehouse, followed closely by Gabriel at her feet. Saffron City was completely surrounded by walls because it was an experimental city, home to the Silph Corporation. It was a very secretive organization and nearly the whole city worked for them. All this probably made it very easy for the Rockets to take over and one look out that little window showed Amy the extent of the damage. There were clearly the remains of a battle all around. In the windows of the apartments she saw a few scared faces of the residents of the city. On the streets were dozens of Rockets in uniform. A pair stood in front of every building too. Amy beckoned to her companions to come and look with her. "There's no way we're getting in there like this, everyone outside has a uniform."

"Well we could take this guy's so at least one of us can get in there. I'm sure he has it around" Duplica pointed out.

"Yeah, but shouldn't we call the police for something like this?" Amy asked her friend as she checked the drawers in the small cabinet against the wall.

"Oh we are so lucky!" Duplica squealed pulling out not one, but four uniforms.

"But Duplica..."

"Look, Amy," Gary asked grabbed her hand. She froze in shock but Gary hurried on before she could say anything, "Haven't you ever wanted to be a hero? We can totally wipe the floor with these guys!"

Amy pulled away and snapped back "WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? We are first time trainers! We only have 6 Pokémon each and many of mine aren't exactly battlers, like Gabriel. He's just a baby really. We have badges sure, but only 3 each. You act as if we're amazing but we're not!"

"Are you guys coming or not?" Duplica asked already at the door in full uniform. Beside her was... Liam? Amy blinked, stared at Liam, looked at the floor, and looked back. Liam was on the floor too.

"Ditto?" Amy asked suspiciously.

"Ditto!" the Rocket guard copy cried happily throwing a fist in the air.

"Duplica! We can't have Ditto be a Rocket! Especially one that some of these guys might know!" Gary snapped.

"Why not?"

"Because if someone sees him and tries talking to him, how long do you think it'll take before they figure out all he can say is 'Ditto'?"

"Oh yeah..." Duplica said with a sigh. Ditto transformed back into its blob state and sighed too. Duplica took out her Pokeball and put him inside.

"We can't go in there!" Amy snapped and stamped her foot. Why weren't they getting this?

"Well maybe you're not but we are." Gary grinned. Amy turned to see him in uniform too. He and Duplica headed for the door into Saffron.

"YOU ARE NOT!" Amy yelled grabbing both of them by the backs of the shirts "Are you both completely insane? You're both completely insane!"

"We just want to do our part for the greater good!" Gary said trying to pull away.

"Greater good my foot, you said you just wanted to play the hero..."

"I do not! I just-"

"Hey, where's Gabriel?" Duplica asked suddenly. Amy let go of Gary and he fell forward onto the ground. Amy looked around wildly.

"Gabriel? Gabriel! Where are you?" Amy asked frantically when Gary pulled her towards the window looking into Saffron City and made her look out it. Amy nearly fainted dead away.

Gabriel was headed straight towards the guard in front of a small house. The house looked out of place amid the apartments on either side but still had a guard in front of it.

"Oh no," Amy whispered. The Cubone hopped past the guard into the bushes. Amy blinked. He hadn't been noticed? She watched as Gabriel climbed the side of the house and jimmied open the window slightly before dropping into it and out of site. Amy slid away from the window and felt like all her blood was running cold. "Oh. My. God," she whispered. Suddenly Gary's cell phone rang. He grabbed it fast and put it to his ear.

"Hello? Gramps? What is- what? No way! Do ya think it was Rockets? We're right outside Saffron now! No, of course not we weren't just waltzing in! We-"

"You were about to, give me that!" Amy snapped grabbing the phone and elbowing Gary away "Prof. Oak?"

"Amy?" Oak's voice came over the phone "As I just told Gary, Bill's prototype transfer system has been stolen. I was with him at the time on business; the men who took it said something about Saffron City. I thought you'd be in the area so I wanted to let you know it might not be safe."

"It's not!" Amy cried, "Team Rocket has completely taken it over! They're keeping all the citizens trapped in their own houses and Gabriel went in there!" she fought to keep from crying. She was not breaking down over the phone, this just wasn't the time!

"Gabriel?" Prof. Oak sounded confused, though it was really no wonder.

"Oh, my baby Cubone I got in Lavender Town, he went into Saffron and got himself into one of the houses!"

"Well don't panic and do something rash like running in after him. If he's inside a house I'm sure he' be alright for the moment, you just get away from that city and get the police."

"But I- oh alright. Bye," Amy sighed and hung up.

"Amy come look!" Duplica called. Amy rushed to the window and saw to her horror that clearly a Rocket had noticed Gabriel crawl into the house after all. They had infiltrated the house and brought the Cubone outside. They seemed pretty excited. Amy recalled that it was Rockets who had tried to take Gabriel's skull before.

"So what's the plan now- AMY!" Gary yelled as Amy ran out through the door towards the Rocket holding the squirming Cubone in his grip.

"LET GO OF GABRIEL RIGHT NOW!" Amy screamed and tackled the Rocket to the ground. He let out a shriek and Gabriel went flying, to be caught by Duplica. She held him tightly and Gary appeared beside her.

"Gedoff, how'd you get in here?" the Rocket grunted from the ground. He grabbed Amy's upper arms and flipped her off, getting to his feet and yanking up Amy with him. Gary made to move forward but Duplica stopped him. "Hey, you two there!" the Rocket holding Amy snapped looking straight at Gary and Duplica.

"Who, us?" Gary asked.

"Yeah you, give that Cubone to me and find somewhere to put this girl, find out who she is too come to think of it," he growled, shoving Amy into Gary who looked surprised for a moment, then grinned and grabbed her around the middle, trapping her arms to her sides.

"Will do," he said in his most evil sounding voice.

"Gary!-uh, let me go you evil man!" Amy shouted squirming around fighting a violent blush.

"Hey, why should I hand over Gabriel-I mean this Cubone?" Duplica asked crossing her arms over Cubone's stomach.

"Because I'm an executive, and you're just Grunts. Which is why you have to deal with squirming intruders while I hand over more test subjects for Bill's mutant machine," the Rocket explained sounding irritated. He reached forward and snatched Gabriel from Duplica before stomping off, getting lost in a crowd of Rockets. Amy could hear Gabriel crying as he went.

"Did he say... laboratory? Like, where they do experiments? MUTANTS?" Amy shrieked and tried struggling away but Gary held her back, with some help from Duplica.

"Cool it Amy!" Gary groaned dragging her down an alley between apartment buildings.

"I will not cool it! He just took Gabriel to do some mutant experimentations! I can't just let him-!"

"Do you want us all caught here? We have to think! And get you a uniform; you stand out like this," Duplica said exasperatedly.

Amy looked at Duplica surprised. She was talking sense. "Duplica, you're... right. But I don't think there's time! We don't even know where he went!"

"Then we'll find out. But first you need a uniform. I don't think we can get back to the gatehouse, we'll have to mug someone, " Gary said, edging to the mouth of the alley. Amy blinked.

"Did you just say mug?" she shrieked. Duplica clapped a hand over her mouth.

"Ssh!" she hissed and went over to Gary. Amy tried to follow but Duplica told her to stay back. She sucked in her cheeks wondering what they were going to do. Suddenly a Rocket passed by himself in front of the alley and Duplica and Gary jumped him, quickly dragging him into the alley. He struggled but Amy released Harmony and got her to sing into the Rocket's ear, putting him to sleep. She recalled her Jigglypuff and they proceeded to remove the Rocket's uniform. Amy donned it and found she had to roll up the pant legs and sleeves to get it to at least look like it fit. She wasn't sure how this was going to work out.

*****

Only 10 minutes later the three of them had managed to discover where the lab was (there was a map in one of the Rocket's pockets with it marked out) and had managed to sneak into the building. Duplica tugged on Amy's shirt sleeve and pointed across the lobby where the elevator was closing.

"Score! It's the Rocket, with Gabriel!" Duplica whispered pointing as the doors closed. Gary nodded and motioned for the girls to follow him as they walked as calmly as possible across the lobby. They watched the numbers above the elevator drop to basement 4. Gary pressed the down button and the doors slid open. A nerdy looking man stepped out, muttering something as he scanned a clipboard. He didn't seem to notice any of the people he passed. Amy and Duplica glanced at each other quickly before following Gary into the elevator. The door shut.

"Okay. So, we're in. Now what?" Amy sighed leaning against the wall.

"We save Gabriel of course, what do you think?" Gary snapped.

"Actually, even if we reach Gabriel and get him away from this lab thing, we'd still need to get out of this place. By the time we get out they'll probably find the guard. Then the guy who saw Amy earlier will tell them we're here," Duplica mused, almost to herself. Amy and Gary looked horrified.

"So, we're pretty well doomed then?" Amy whispered.

Gary set his jaw and shook his head. "We are NOT doomed. Stop talking like that Duplica."

"I'm only saying this will be hard, I'm not saying it's not possible. We can't just barge in and take Gabriel though. We need an excuse to do so. Also, we need to be able to get out of this city and alert authorities."

"We could just use my cell to call the police," Gary offered.

Amy shook her head sharply. "No, they'll probably be able to detect the signal," They looked at each other warily as the elevator clanked to a stop. The doors opened and the three of them viewed the most horrid sight they ever had. The light was bright and all was sparkling clean, but the walls were lined with cages. Each cage had a Pokémon crammed uncomfortably inside. That was bad enough, but many of the Pokémon were also sporting clear mutations. There was a Pinser with Kingler legs. A Pigeot with Kingler claws in the place of wings. A Tangela covered in feathers.

"This is horrible." Duplica said in hushed tones. Amy nodded ever so slightly in agreement.

"Hey, what if we released these guys as a diversion?" Gary whispered excitedly. The girls glared at him.

"What?!"

"We can't just release them! That'll give us away immediately!" Amy hissed.

"We just have to get Gabriel out of here, he's just a baby!" Duplica snapped.

Suddenly a sharp voice echoed from the right and all three of them jumped. "What are you three doing standing around there? You're needed at the back; the professor is doing a new experiment, trying to graft Sneasel claws on a Cubone or something..."

Amy stared at the Rocket and felt boiling anger raise within her. She swept towards the back without a second glance at the Rocket who told them to go back there. Gary and Duplica did see his face however and immediately raced after Amy to stop her. Unfortunately they were a little late. From the floor around them just as they caught up with Amy iron bars sprang up, fencing them in.

"Hey! Let us out- ow!" Duplica sucked her finger after touching the bars. Apparently they were electrified.

"Okay, clearly we were expected," Amy groaned.

"But how, damn it!" Gary snapped as the Rocket who Amy tackled and a man with grey hair and lab coat came towards them smiling evilly. Duplica, Gary and Amy glared at them.

"So you are Gary Oak I assume? Interesting. In case you haven't figured it out, which I doubt considering how young and stupid you are."

"Hey!" Gary growled but the old scientist man ignored him and carried on.

"There was a video camera and microphone in the toll house where you took out our guard. In fact, the entire city is being monitored. You got in only because it was allowed. We thought your Pokémon could be good testing subjects and more hostages are always good in police business. Don't you wonder how the police from other cities haven't intruded on us yet? We've already told them what would become of the residents of Saffron if they raise any kind of alarm," he smirked. Amy felt a rising disgust for this man.

"Why are you doing this? Why the hell have you taken over a city, mutated Pokémon, and then led us in here only to capture us?" Amy snapped.

The scientist blinked in surprise. "Why, it's simply orders. Also, when Giovanni takes over the world using his mutant army and his own secret project...well I was promised a city or two to rule over. It's all personal interest. Don't take it out on me; you'd do the same thing if you had the opportunity."

"No we wouldn't!" Duplica snapped.

_  
'Giovanni, is that their boss then?_' Amy thought to herself as Gary started screaming profanities at the Rockets. Suddenly a sharp course of electricity blasted through her body and a shriek involuntarily burst from her lips. Duplica and Gary seemed to have had a shock as well, and Gary shut up.

"Such language! Didn't old Professor Oak ever teach you any manners?" the scientist said in mock pleasantness. Gary seemed more furious, but didn't start yelling this time. Amy thought that was the most mature thing he'd done, or had refrained from doing, all day "Well anyway, back to mutating this Cubone," the scientist said smiling and going across the room with the Rocket to a machine Amy automatically registered as the prototype Pokémon transfer system. Recalling its power to transfer qualities at random of the last Pokémon transferred to whatever Pokémon was put through it, Amy did not like where this was going.

"He's just a baby! Leave him alone!" she cried but another shock went through the cage.

"Be QUIET!" the scientist snapped angrily. Then he smiled again. "I think a nice blend with a Sneasel will be most interesting. We've been working on ways to determine which qualities to pass to the next Pokémon. I think claws would be a good idea... you see here we store all the failed mutations for further analysis, but whenever a useful mutation is produced it's shipped to our boss's project's location. In any case, our last Pokémon to go through the system was a Beedrill... thing lost his wings and got covered in fur thanks to the Ninetails DNA. Oh well no matter, we've discovered that more useful attributes are transferred when the Pokémon are closer to the same species and shape. Now let's put this Sneasel that was brought in the other day," the scientist took a cage that held a perfectly ordinary looking Sneasel, but it had clearly been sedated. Beside that cage was one that housed a terrified looking Gabriel. Amy felt tears come to her eyes. The Sneasel was dumped into one container of the bulky machine. It looked up apathetically, not seeming to understand what was going on. The container was closed.

"Stop this! Can't you see you shouldn't mess with nature? Or use Pokémon in random genetic experiments? It's just wrong!" Duplica yelled; getting another zap as the transfer was begun. The Sneasel disappeared. A moment passed, and then it reappeared in the other container. Only now it had a pair of Beedrill wings on its back, and its claws had been replaced with stingers.

"Hmm, an improvement, if he can use them to fly." the scientist muttered as he loaded the still groggy Pokémon back into its cage and the other Rocket took the cage.

"Should I ship or stack it?" he asked in an almost bored voice, as if he'd said it too many times to count. He probably had.

"Hmm... stack I think for now, in the ability test room."

"Roger," the Rocket left.

"And now for this Cubone," the scientist said grinning as he took Gabriel's cage.

"NO!" Amy yelled and tried to hit the bars but stumbled back from the electricity. The scientist smirked as he dumped Gabriel into the container. Suddenly Amy realised something she certainly hadn't before... Gabriel didn't have its signature bone club. She hadn't even thought about it, but it was the source of most of its attacks. It was probably in panic that she noticed such things.

"And now, presto chango..." the scientist chuckled. Amy couldn't hold back tears anymore. She'd never felt so helpless. She started to cry and Gary looked at her a little shocked at tears coming from her.

"Amy, it'll be okay," he said softly, putting his arm around her and holding her to him. She leaned against him, she couldn't help herself. She was in distress.

"Wait a second," Duplica said blinking, taking her Pokeball holding Ditto from her pocket. Gary noticed and reached into his own pocket for his Pokeball. Amy raised her head, felt a wave of embarrassment for not remembering sooner that they all still had their other Pokémon. Just as the scientist pressed the button, he was tackled by Ditto, Isis and Socrates. Gary then called out Casper who sent the old man to sleep. Their Pokémon proceeded to release them from their cage and Amy went to check the damage to her sweet little Gabriel.

"Um, actually, he doesn't look too bad," Duplica said smiling a little when they saw.

"If he can build up the strength to lift those claws," Gary said crossing his arms.

"Gabriel? Do you feel alright?" Amy whispered, picking up Gabriel cautiously but almost dropping him as he tried to embrace her. The little Pokémon had turned black, its skull silver and shining. Its arms were now however two overlarge Sneasel claws. Naturally that was a pretty dangerous thing for a baby Pokémon to have. "Gabriel, it'll be okay, we'll find a way to reverse this," Amy moaned softly. Gary put his arm around her again but she shrugged him away. This was not the time! "Okay, we need a plan again!" Amy said turning to face the others.

"Do you have one in mind?" Gary asked seeming a little put out by Amy rejecting his touch.

"I have an idea! We'd have Gary dress up as the scientist and-"

"No Duplica! No more disguises! I think the only reason they worked before is that they were expecting us, and besides, trying to be someone who's important is harder than a few nameless Rocket grunts, there is no way!" Amy snapped, "I have a plan, we release these Pokémon in here, and as they cause a distraction, we get out of here. Though they've probably tightened security on exits to make sure we won't get away..." Amy trialed off

"They think we're still trapped though!" Duplica said determined.

"Yeah, but here's my idea, we get the mutants to cause a distraction, and we use it to sneak up to this Giovanni's office and hold HIM hostage!" Gary said excitedly.

Amy growled in frustration. "WE DON'T EVEN KNOW IF HE'S IN THE CITY GARY!" Amy shrieked.

"Well, actually, I think Gary has a good idea. He at least probably has an office he uses here. We could totally get in there and find something incriminating enough to stop them!" Duplica said happily. Amy couldn't believe this.

"Even if that's true do you have any idea what kind of security they'd have there?"

"Always a dark cloud with you isn't it?" Gary smirked. Amy stared at him. That sounded familiar. "Yes, you said that before. Back when my car got crushed by a tree..."

"Your car got crushed by a tree?" Duplica said blinking in confusion.

"Yeah, and Amy thought winging it was an okay idea then."

"Our lives weren't in danger then!" Amy snapped, but felt herself starting to break down just a little. "Oh... okay. We'll release the mutants. Then we'll get out of here and play it by ear okay? Make sure your Rocket uniforms are on right," Amy said as she headed for the cages, the Pokémon behind her.

*****

It turned out that Gabriel's new claws were excellent lock picks. All the same, it took a while to get only a few out before Ditto noticed a button to release all the cages at once. After that the alarm was soon sounded and the three of them returned their Pokémon, even placing Gabriel a little un-wilfully, inside their Pokeballs. They then headed into the elevator, as it seemed the only way out of the laboratory. (Amy noted that it was probably poor fire planning on the builder's part.) From the elevator Amy intended to have them get off on the ground floor. Unfortunately her travel partners decided through conversation that since this was the tallest building in the city, Giovanni's office was probably at the very top floor of it. Amy said that was ridiculous. But they made her stay on the elevator till the top. Amy felt like she was going to be sick as they stepped out into a small room. On one side was a staircase. On the other was a door. The words 'Silph Co President' were on the door. Gary reached for the handle. It was unlocked. Inside was a typical CEO office, with the big deck and tall chair. It faced away from them.

"Do... do you think he's in the chair? Waiting for us?" Duplica whispered nervously, her voice echoing in the room. No movement was to be seen nor any other sound heard except for shouts and running on lower floors, echoing up the elevator shaft as the doors closed, leaving them in silence.

"I don't think he's in it," Amy said cautiously walking around the desk. No, the chair was empty. But on the desk something very startling caught her eye. It was a picture. She stared, her mouth dropped open. "G-Gary..." she stuttered motioning him over to look. He came over confused, along with Duplica. For Duplica, it held no meaning; Gary on the other hand joined Amy in astonishment. The picture had a man with matted black hair and dark eyes with his arm around a woman with long red hair tied back in a ponytail. Her stomach was round from pregnancy. It was Ash's mother. Delia Ketchum.

"Oh my gosh!" Duplica gasped when they told her what this picture meant. "Um, maybe it was the Silph Co president? Doesn't make sense seeing as Ash's dad left his family but-" Amy shook her head, reading some freshly shuffled papers on the desk. They were for Giovanni Ketchum. Amy was certain she was going to throw up.

"Well... I guess he was bad news huh," Gary said quietly. Amy glared at him.

"Shut up! This is not the time for I told you so! Besides, Ash is so NOT like him!" Amy shouted.

"What are you three doing in here?" A sharp voice sounded from the door. The three looked up simultaneously and saw the man from the picture, Giovanni. Only he looked older. Deep wrinkles had formed under his eyes and his hair was shorter. He was also wearing what Amy decided was an extremely unattractive orange rich man suit. At his heels walked a Persian.

"We were just, um, leaving," Gary said awkwardly as he and Duplica tried to head for the door. Amy did not accompany them. She snatched the picture off the desk and faced Giovanni with it, anger blazing in her eyes.

"WHY DID YOU JUST LEAVE THEM? FOR THIS? HOW COULD YOU DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT?" she yelled pointing accusingly at him. He stared at her, seeming surprised.

"What are you talking about? That was... a long time ago. What do you care? You don't know them."

"I do!" Amy seethed. Gary motion for her to shut up, but she wasn't up for listening to him. "Ash, this woman's son, my best friend! My name is Amy," she took off the Rocket hat revealing her hair and face, "and these are Gary and Duplica. Ash lives practically next door in Pallet Town with us, well not Duplica but Gary and me, damn you, have you any idea... you are a MONSTER!" Amy shrieked again and charged at him, probably to tackle him again. He narrowed his eyes and stepped aside quickly, she tripped and fell forward, only just being caught by Gary who happened to be in the right place at the right time. Giovanni did a strange double take on Duplica with an odd look on his face but it was quickly washed away into an annoyed expression.

"Silly girl, you don't understand, and I don't intend to explain it to you. So shut up and get out of here before you`re caught. If you are then I will not help you," Giovanni muttered and took the picture from Amy who seemed more than a little surprised.

"You... aren't going to tell them where we are?" Amy asked softly.

"Get out of here now and I won't. And don't even think about telling anyone who I am. Do you think they'd want to know?" he growled, glaring. "I don't think so. Just be glad I'm letting you go." Amy stared at him a moment, then went to leave. Though at the door appeared a woman with long blue hair. She had a dark coldness in her eyes.

"What the hell are you doing in my city? Your men said I'd find their boss here," she said in a monotonous voice.

Giovanni's eyes narrowed at the woman. "Sabrina, you were supposed to be away for a year. It's only been 7 months," he said softly.

"I felt a great surge of panic from the city so I came only to find it was your own Rockets who had panicked, not the citizens. I do not care about the people of this city, but I do care that you have transformed my gym into a tavern," he glared and ice seemed to penetrate everything around her. "Leave," she hissed. Giovanni stared at her, seeming to be shaking in fear and rage at the same time. He marched toward the elevator and went down.

Sabrina turned to Amy and the others. "You are not Rockets," Sabrina said in the same monotonous state. Amy was still in a state of immense confusion, Duplica was still a little freaked by Giovanni's odd look at her, but Gary still had sense enough to nod, despite Sabrina's freezing stare. "You have come to challenge me to a match. Very well. But first I will get rid of the Rockets," she closed her eyes. Amy glanced out the window it time to see hundreds of Rockets on the street glow blue and vanish. Sabrina's eyes opened and she staggered slightly "There were more than I thought. But I said I would battle you. I do not require full strength for that," she breathed.

"Wait, where did all the Rocket's go?" Duplica asked a little warily.

"I teleported them all to wherever their boss had decided to go."

"What? You could have sent them into the police you know!" Gary snapped, breaking free of Sabrina's icy stare.

"I told you, affairs of other people do not interest me. Besides, the police are useless. The Rockets would have easily escaped," Sabrina said softly and suddenly Duplica, Amy and Gary felt a tingling sensation, and disappeared.

*****

A flash of blue light and they all stood inside what was clearly the gym. There was garbage all over but it was being quickly swept away by several hooded individuals, who seemed to be Sabrina's disciples or something.

"Ah..." Amy said awkwardly as Sabrina floated to the opposite end of the arena.

"Who will challenge me first? Be forewarned that should you face me and fail, you will remain here, forever," The three of them stared at each other.

"Do we have a choice? Because, I'm not really here to challenge you, just to cheer them on.," Duplica said pointing to Amy and Gary.

"Then should one of them lose you will stay with them."

"Oh," Duplica squeaked.

"Um, I, uh, I guess I'll go first then," Gary said stepping up to the challenger's space. A disciple stood as judge. Amy wondered if perhaps the hooded people were once challengers here. She shivered. The judge did not speak; it was Sabrina who said it was to be a one on one Pokémon battle.

"Go, Abra," Sabrina said softly, a Pokeball appearing in front of here and pushed towards the field. The brown and gold Pokémon emerged, sitting peacefully almost. It was asleep. Gary seemed clear that this would be an easy victory. Amy didn't like this. Sabrina seemed powerful on her own. Her Pokémon were probably just as, if not more powerful.

"Go Casper!" Gary caused and threw the Pokeball containing his Haunter. Sabrina did not seem worried despite the type disadvantage. This unnerved Amy all the more."Alright! Casper, Hypnosis!"

"Gary it's already asleep!" Amy shouted. Gary blinked.

"Oh, yeah, Dream Eater!"

"I'm doomed," Duplica murmured. Ditto released itself from its Pokeball and cowered beside her. Duplica hugged it for comfort.

"Abra, Teleport," said Sabrina. Abra's closed eyes seemed to open ever so slightly and glowed red. The Pokémon vanished and appeared behind Casper just as it lunged for it.

"What the, but it's asleep!" Gary said in shock.

"Abra can use attacks while it is sleeping," Amy's Pokedex explained as she asked.

_  
'Great,'_ Amy thought sarcastically.

"Well, then, Nightshade!" Gary yelled. Casper spun around just as Abra used Flash. All in the gym were blinded by the light. When the light dimmed a Thunder punch had been sent straight at Casper and had sent him reeling across the room.

"Oh no," Amy moaned. She didn't like this at all and Sabrina scared her. She didn't want to face her. But how could she back out now? Sabrina knew she had wanted to fight her.

"NIGHT SHADE FULL POWER!" Gary yelled. Clearly, he wanted this over with. Casper used it. It engulfed Abra.

"Wow, I didn't actually expect that," Amy muttered. The black light faded. Abra lay still. Sabrina frowned and returned it. Clearly the match had been won. Casper made like he was about to victory dance with Gary, but instead fell to the ground.

"What's wrong?" Gary said confused going to his Pokémon as he checked his Pokedex.

"When ghost Pokémon are backed into a difficult situation, they can use up all their life energy at one time to defeat its opponent. Being a ghost, this means it can recover, but it can take over a week to come back into consciousness. Usually wild ghost Pokémon will dissipate into a vapour form when in this state as protection, but a trainer's ghost Pokémon on will usually not due to the influence of a Pokeball capture. Trainers are urged to keep their ghost Pokémon inside their Pokeball during rest time if their Pokémon has used up its life energy."

"What? Oh great," Gary groaned returning his Pokémon. Duplica breathed a sigh of relief as Sabrina had a Marsh badge appear in front of Gary. He took it and went back to cheer on Amy. Amy took her place, shaking slightly, and wondered what Pokémon she could possibly use. She decided on Isis, she did know Bite, a dark move. However, as Amy reached for her Pokeball, Gabriel burst from his. He looked up at Amy almost accusingly. She had forgotten to let him out again, but she wasn't quite sure the danger had passed.

"Oh no, Gabriel you can't come out here! I wanted to use-" but Gabriel stepped onto the field. He seemed to actually want to battle. Amy stared. But maybe he knew what he was doing...? Sabrina released a Hypno. Hypno are known for being rather slow, but Gabriel couldn`t have adjusted to the new weight of the claws already. Amy didn`t like this.

"Hypnosis."

"Ah, just close your eyes!" Amy yelled. Gabriel did so... and then swung its claws. It crashed into Hypno's skull. Hypno seemed stunned, but Amy couldn't tell if Sabrina felt the same. She had a very expressionless face. Then without warning, Gabriel let loose an ice beam over Hypno, freezing it solid. Amy blinked. Clearly Gabriel had gotten a lot stronger.

*****

With new Marsh badges in hand and all thoroughly relieved to leave this city far behind as they headed out the gate toward Celadon. As they left though, with Gabriel at her heels and Gary still trying to hold her hand, Amy kept wondering what was it that made Giovanni leave his family, why didn`t he ever come back, and why did he look at Duplica in that odd way...?


	16. Scents, Shopping Sprees, Slot Machines

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 16~Scents, Shopping Sprees, Slot Machines... and Game freak?**

Despite all the stuff that happened in Saffron, and the uncanny discovery of Ash's father, Amy, Gary and Duplica seemed to have decided mutually and silently to not talk about it. Instead, Duplica and Amy filled the silence with excited talk about an enormous shopping spree at the Celadon department store. Gary only spoke up to remind Amy that she was on a limited budget to which she replied that he wasn't. He didn't like where this was going but did not pursue the subject. Ditto seemed as excited as Duplica as per usual but Gabriel seemed only confused as they approached the giant department store, the biggest in the region. It had only taken them all about an hour to walk from Saffron to Celadon; they were so close to each other.

The group entered through the revolving doors, Amy resisting the insane temptation to run around and around in it, and were immediately hit by an army of saleswomen spraying them with about 20 kinds of perfume. Amy felt her eyes water and she started to cough. Gary held his shirt over his nose and squinted through the clouds of scented air. Gabriel and Ditto, below the smog of perfume, looked up in confusion. Duplica seemed delighted. She eagerly breathed in the mixed aromas and begged the women to let her try more. Amy felt nauseous and she scooped up Gabriel, grabbed Gary and both of them pushed Duplica far away from the perfume department.

"No wait! I want to buy some!" Duplica whined trying to get back to the display. Gary and Amy blinked.

"Not on your life," Gary said flatly.

"Why not?" Duplica demanded. Amy smiled warmly and put a hand on her shoulder, looking at her in the eyes.

"Don't take this the wrong way, I understand you feel that the perfume smells absolutely heavenly, however," she narrowed her eyes and her smile dropped. "If you wear it, I may throw up on you. Do you see where I'm coming from? I believe Gary will conquer."

Gary jolted. "What? Oh, uh, right."

Amy's eyes widened. "Gary, were you checking out the sales girls?"

"What? No way! You know I wouldn't give you up now..." Gary grinned bringing her into a one armed hug that she yanked away from.

"Yes alright, we have shopping to do!" she grinned at Duplica who flashed a thumbs up. Gabriel and Ditto looked up at their trainers.

"And we can find Pokémon clothes too, they'll be so cute!" Duplica said looked down at her Ditto, undoubtedly picturing the pink blob in a bow tie or something.

"Are you kidding? Pokémon aren't dress up dolls!" Gary interjected.

Amy shrugged."To each their own, let's go!" So, each girl grabbing one of Gary's arms, they dragged the poor teen into store after store. Gary got bored after the first 15 minutes and started complaining. Amy informed him that he could go to the electronics level and they'd meet him at the rooftop restaurant in an hour. Gary leapt at the idea and ran off.

"I'm surprised; I thought he'd hold out longer than this," Duplica said at his fast retreat.

"Well, he IS a guy, stereotypical as that is to say," Amy said with a shrug.

"So do you want to try on swimsuits now?"

"You know it!" They both went off giggling.

*****

A few minutes later, while Amy and Duplica were busily rooting through bathing suit tops and bottoms, mixing and matching, Gary had gone up to the electronics floor. Slasher had been at his side but he showed a strong interest in the cables for the computer at the sales desk, so he was returned. Gary had interested himself in the latest video games when he heard a couple of men talking in low voices. He glanced at a TV set and saw their reflections in the black glass. They kept glancing at him. He found that pretty weird and listened closer.

"So he has no idea we're watching him? That is so insane!"

"I know, but for god's sake be quiet! Do you want to join or not?"

"So I'd get to help with the creation of new Pokémon? And control these kids' adventures?"

"Yes, essentially."

"Then I'm in!"

"Excellent."

Gary frowned. They could be talking about some new video game he supposed, they do make them in Celadon. All the same, when they began to leave for the elevator Gary started following them. He got into the elevator straight after them, attempting to look inconspicuous but was met by even more awkward glances then before. They got off the next floor down and ran off so fast Gary hadn't a hope of keeping up with them. He tried to give chase anyway, but he was distracted by Amy and Duplica who he happened to crash into as he rounded a corner. Shopping bags went flying.

"Wha- Gary! What the heck?" Amy snapped, struggling to her feet and helping Duplica up. Gary looked at them sheepishly once he was on his feet as well.

"I was just- you know what? Never mind. Are you done?" Gary said with a sigh.

Duplica glanced at Amy who replied, "I guess so."

"How the hell are we going to carry all this around?" Gary grumbled.

"Oh, we're only keeping a couple outfits with us. The rest, and some of the clothes we have now, we're going to ship them home," Duplica said happily.

"Where DO you live anyway Duplica?" Amy asked raising an eyebrow.

Duplica looked surprised. "I never told you? Well, I'm actually a Johto native; I lived in Goldenrod, with my grandpa. But then Ditto and I heard where Lance's whereabouts were to be next, so we headed for Vermillion!"

"You came all this way to meet Lance?" Gary asked disbelievingly.

"Yup!"

"Oh my," Amy said massaging her temples, not believing this.

At Gary`s urging they left the mall and headed for the Pokémon center. They intended to ship the clothes home from there, Amy deciding it might be best to send them to Ash's mom rather than her father for now. Though Gary did feel annoyed that she wouldn't take his offer to send them to Prof. Oak's instead. Amy actually debated asking Delia Ketchum about Giovanni, but decided against it. She hadn't digested the information herself and it was a lot to impose on her best friend's mom. They were only about a block away from the center when Gary noticed the same two guys from earlier, now with a third member, in a nearby alley. He slowed down and looked straight at them. Amy glanced back in confusion.

"What's wrong?" she asked, slowing as well. Gary looked at her, then the alley, but the men had disappeared.

"I uh, nothing, I guess..."

Amy frowned. "It's not 'nothing'. Now tell me."

"What's going on?" Duplica asked, backtracking to them.

"I'll tell you at the center, you're going to have to drop your bags and we should check in anyway," Gary said, flushing slightly. He wasn't even sure he'd seen and heard what he thought he did. Odds were that it was nothing; there probably hadn't even been anyone in the alley.

*****

After checking into the center, Gary sat opposite Amy and Duplica in their room. He sighed and scratched his head before telling them everything, from seeing the men in the electronics department to what he thought he saw in the alley. Amy and Duplica glanced at each other.

"Gary... I hate to say it but you were probably imagining it," Amy sighed.

Duplica nodded. "You don't even really believe it yourself do you?"

Gary shook his head. "Not really. I guess I'm still just on edge with all the action going on or something. I don't know. So can we head for the gym now?"

"Okay, let's go!" Duplica said grinning and standing quickly. Amy got up a little slower, looking closely at Gary who was turned away. Despite what she had said she felt that something was up. Something concerning them. She hoped it wasn't in a bad way, since she planned to ignore it.

*****

About an hour and a half of wandering the city completely lost later, the crew found themselves at last in front of a giant greenhouse which apparently doubled as the Celadon City gym. They entered the gym doors and something unexpected and horrible happened.

More perfume girls.

"OH SWEET SUICUNE NOT AGAIN!" Amy and Gary cried together and fell to the ground. Duplica grinned and breathed deeply. Amy wondered if her sense of smell was dead or something. The scent clouds departed and the girl glared down.

"If you don't like perfume you can't be in the gym!" one girl with bright pink hair said angrily.

"You're welcome though; can I interest you in a free sample, and then show you the lovely selection we offer of different scents? We supply the Celadon Dept. store, but our best scents are only sold here. They do cost a bit more, but it's worth it!" a brown haired girl said smiling at Duplica.

"Oh wow!" Duplica said happily as she was led away.

"Hey, Duplica!" Amy yelled but suddenly found herself lifted up and tossed out the gym door, landing on top of Gary.

"Ow... get off!" Gary groaned pushing Amy away. Amy moaned and glanced at the gym doors.

"Wow. What capitalists," Amy said shaking her head.

"We have to get back in there!" Gary snapped getting to his feet. Amy followed him, scooping up Gabriel as she did so. He look dazed.

"Okay, I agree. So... want to sneak in the air vent?" Amy suggested. Gary blinked.

"Are you serious?"

"Yes."

Gary blinked again.

"What?"

"Well I thought you'd be afraid of getting dirty or something..."

"Are you kidding? Do I look like a Valley Girl?"

"Uh... no."

"Right, so let's go!"

"Cubone?" Gabriel questioned, confused.

"Oh, Gabriel, you're going to have to sit in the Pokeball for a little while," Amy said returning him. Amy and Gary looked at each other, smiled, and then went looking for an air vent grate.

*****

About 15 minutes later, Amy and Gary had succeeded in crawling through a dirty air vent, ending up very dusty and gross, but had still made it to Erika the gym leader's room. They told her that either she had to battle them for a badge or they were calling the Pokémon League board of directors. Faced with the fact that she was obligated to accept all challengers regardless of their perfume preferences, Erika agreed to battle them.

When they reached the gym battle field Duplica was already on the sidelines, arms laden with many bottles of perfume. Amy groaned, making a mental note to make her send them all to her house immediately or throw them all in the river. One or the other.

In any case, due to Erika's array of herbal remedies in addition to her perfume, she was able to use the same Pokémon to battle both Gary and Amy. A Weepinbell, Tangela, and a Gloom. Gary's Haunter may have been out of commission, but clearly Erika's Pokémon weren't that good, since she'd mostly only battled the small percentage of the population that likes perfume sprayed in their face unexpectedly. Socrates cleared Weepinbell and Tangela, but he needed to use Spoink's psychic powers to defeat Gloom. Amy had an easier time; Gabriel's Ice Beam cleared Erika easily. Especially since it was completely unexpected for her. So, Rainbow badges in hand, Gary and Amy left the greenhouse capitalist gym dragging Duplica and her Ditto with them to the Pokémon center.

*****

After Duplica shipped her perfume home, Gary and Amy's Pokémon were healed up and fed, and Gary and Amy themselves had showered away the vent dust, they decided to wander the city a little before going to bed for the night. They stopped in front of the Celadon City Game corner. Gary had stopped them actually.

"Those are them! Right THERE!" Gary said excitedly, pointing out the 3 men heading inside the Game corner.

"So, you want to follow them? Duplica asked, out of her perfume daze now.

"Yeah, but only if Amy wants to as well..." he grinned at her. She sighed. She WAS curious, and apparently he could tell.

"Oh fine," Amy sighed crossing her arms. They entered, passing the slot machines, trying to stay inconspicuous. They saw something odd then. Glancing around suspiciously, the men lifted a poster, pressed a button behind it, and a panel opened beside it. NO one noticed, consumed by the games everywhere and the flashing lights. They headed down the stairs on the other side of the panel. With a quick glance at each other, Amy, Gary and Duplica ran down the stairs just as the panel closed. It was dark, so they didn't notice. They waited until they were out of sight before following further, staying silent.

"Are they following?"

"Ssh!"

"Well they've heard us by now..."

_'What?_' Amy thought confused at the men's conversation. The lights flipped on the men appeared.

"Well you may as well join us NOW," one man with greying temples said glaring at a younger looking man who grinned nervously.

"Who the hell ARE you guys?" Gary demanded.

"We are Game freak," the third man with an interesting moustache said smiling.

Duplica blinked. "Who?" After Gary and Amy informed Duplica that Game Freak were the most famous video game designers in the world, the men led them down the stairs into what appeared to be a laboratory. There were men in lab coats all over. Several looked up and greeted Duplica, Amy and Gary by name, severely freaking them out.

"How do you know us? This doesn't look like a video game studio to me," Amy said, looking at the men closely.

The moustache man grinned. "You're right. Actually, we are the people who make the Pokemon, people and events in your world. We control, essentially, everything."

Gary blinked. "Really."

Amy smirked a little. "I see." Duplica just laughed.

"I see you don't believe me, well it's true. Actually, we come from an entirely different world from this. We create adventures for you here and then broadcast them to the other world. You are all just part of a cartoon show. Granted, a very popular one."

Duplica sobered. "You guys are... serious. Oh my god."

"So, we're on TV?" Gary said, eyes wide.

"Well, not right now. Right now, you're friend Ash and his friends are. He is actually the star of the television show."

"What, him?" Gary yelled.

"Ash? Really?" Duplica said confused.

"So... what are we? Supporting characters?" Amy asked.

"Well yes," the younger man said smiling, looking a little embarrassed. "But you are also the main characters of a fan fiction written by a shut-in girl living in a country called Canada in this other world, of which we are all part. It's on the internet, and has some loyal fans."

"So let me get this straight... we are characters in an internet fan fiction... of a TV show where Ash is the main character..." Amy said slowly.

"My head hurts," Gary groaned.

"So our adventures... are all pointless?" Duplica whispered.

"Oh no! They bring enjoyment to all you read about them!" the younger man said defensively.

"So what! We aren't running our own lives!" Gary shouted "That's not fair damn it!"

"Well anyway, you're here for a reason," the greying man said gruffly, "We are creating the new series of Pokémon and as we have done on several previous occasions, we have to alter the brain function of all the characters so they accept the sudden appearance of a whole new region filled with new Pokémon that was never mentioned before."

"But that's ridiculous!" Duplica said, stamping her foot.

"Sorry, but it's going to have to happen," the men said as scientists suddenly grabbed Amy, Duplica and Gary from behind. They struggled but were eventually brought to a machine where helmets were fitted over their eyes. "Don't worry, it'll all be over soon and you won't remember anything about us or your short tour here. We simply need to make a new series for Pokémon so that we can sell more cards and toys," the men said soothingly as Amy and her travel partners blacked out.

Her last thought was this: _'God is everyone in Celadon a capitalist?'_

*****

Amy, Gary and Duplica woke up the next morning in the Pokémon center feeling refreshed. Amy had some fragments of an odd dream, but they left her soon. They three of them headed for the edge of Celadon after renting bicycles for the bike path to Fuchsia.

"God I can't wait to reach the Safari Zone," Gary said grinning.

"Me either, I hear they have Ditto there that transform in really weird ways!" Duplica said grinning.

"That's sounds like a mutation..." Gary said frowning.

"Anyway, I hear they have Pokémon from the Sinnoh region there! I've wanted a Luxray my whole life!" Amy smiled.

"Yeah I know, you never shut up about it in Pallet. I want a Hippodon myself. So let's go!" Gary said grinning, grabbing Amy's hand and before she could protest he was pulling her towards the bike path at a run. Duplica followed into the noon day sun.

_((Joyful Note: You know seriously, for someone who has already finished writing this story I'm taking an awful long time with updates. Oh well, your frustration, not mine.))_


	17. Out of Breath But Ready to Fight

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 17~Out of Breath, But Ready To Fight**

_((Joyful Note: I am shocked I have actually received an 'Honest Review' of this story. I mean, I knew it deserved them, but I didn't expect to SEE one. And a nice, detailed one too. Huzzah! I like to see that people recognise crap when they see it. Yes, in truth this story is unoriginal and silly. Why do I keep posting it then? Sentimental reasons. And yes, Gary is out of character. My honest reviewer said he was like Paul. It took me a second to remember who he was. Just so it's clear, I've only seen maybe a dozen episodes of Diamond and Pearl, and 2 with Paul. So I really didn't intend for Gary to end up like him specifically. And really, Gary comes off like a serious jerk in the first season. Then he loses in Kanto League, starts to chill out during Johto and then is nice as pie from then onward. But anyway, yeah, sorry for the fact the writing sucks but at the time it was the best thing I'd written and if you'd read what had popped from my creative loins prior to this you'd agree with me.))_

Amy, Duplica and Gary spent about four hours getting down Cycling Road, as the bike path was called. It took this long not because it was that long a bike ride, but because every biker they met wanted to have a Pokémon battle with them. By the time they reached Fuchsia the sun was setting and they were exhausted. The town was pretty small, so they quickly found the Pokémon center. While waiting for their Pokémon to be healed, they discussed where they would be going next.

"Okay, I guess we could go to the gym," Amy sighed, leaning back in her seat in the waiting room.

"I'm good with that," Duplica agreed, leaning back as well, thrilled to be sitting on a seat that wasn't moving.

"Well I'm not," Gary huffed. Amy and Duplica stared at him for this obviously out of character statement. Amy, who was sitting next to him, went so far as to put a hand to his forehead.

"Are you feeling alright Gary? Usually you're always up for gym battle, did you get too much sun out on the bike?" she asked concerned.

"No," Gary said shortly, pushing her hand away. "We're all exhausted and probably shouldn't even think about battling until tomorrow. Also, we should visit the Safari Zone to improve our teams. Fuchsia has a poison gym, and rock and ground types would be really useful."

"Okay, I'm fine with that," Amy said shrugging.

"Me too, I'm TOTALLY wiped out, could sleep for a year!" Duplica laughed.

Amy sighed. "Well I'm not sleepy, so what am I going to do while you take the nap of the decade?"

Gary smirked. "Well, I was going to go to the zoo in front of the Safari Zone, it's pretty famous. You said you wanted to see the sites and this could be educational too. So you could come with me and let Duplica stay here to sleep."

Amy blinked. "Are you trying to get me on a date with you?"

Gary's smirk widened into a grin. "Duh."

Duplica squealed. "That is so sweet! You should totally go!"

"W-ell.... okay," Amy agreed uneasily. Gary let out an 'alright' and threw his fist in the air to celebrate, which caused Amy to blush violently. He then jumped up, grabbed Amy's hand and pulled her up with him. He headed for the door, calling back to Duplica to ask that she take care of their Pokémon once Nurse Joy brought them back.

"No problem, you kids have fun!" Duplica giggled and waved.

*****

The zoo was a free attraction, so nearly everyone passing through Fuchsia stopped by. Therefore, it was extremely crowded. This was good in that it was noisy thereby eliminating awkward silences, but for Amy it was also a bit hair raising as it gave an excellent excuse for Gary to hold her hand the whole time so as not to get separated. Amy was certain that her hand was sweating so much that it would slip free anyway, but oddly enough it didn't.

Despite the fact that Gary kept reading the information cards as if he knew this information all along, Amy had a pretty good time. She found herself learning a bunch too. The zoo had for the most part Pokémon you could find in the Safari Zone, though it also had some rarer specimens from other regions such as a lazy looking Hippodon. Gary mostly jumped from exhibit to exhibit, apparently trying to get a quick glimpse of everything before the day was through. Amy did however force him to stop for a good 15 minutes as she watched the cage, mesmerized. A Dragonair, directed by a trainer, zoomed through hoops suspended by wires. It was so graceful, so fluid in motion, Amy couldn't look away. Gary was interested at first of course, but his attention drifted after a while.

By the time Dragonair finished its routine and the crowd dispersed, the sun was beginning to go down and the guards were coming around to kick everybody out. Gary and Amy headed for the gate, but Amy was now sure of one thing. Tomorrow in the Safari Zone, no matter what it took, she was going to catch a Dratini. On the way back to the Pokémon center, despite the fact they weren't in a crowd crush, Gary was still holding Amy's hand. She felt uncomfortable of course, but she didn't say anything because she didn't_ really _want him to let go.

"So, erm, did you have a good time?" Gary asked awkwardly, noticing that she wasn't speaking or looking at him.

Amy was startled by the sudden question. "What? Oh, yeah I did," she looked down and blushed. He was still holding her hand, and she was VERY conscious of it. She did manage to comment after a minute though, with a soft smirk decorating her lips. "I suppose I shouldn't have to ask if you had a good time, our hands have been practically welded together it seems."

"Do you want me to let go?"

Amy shook her head. "No... it's okay" she laughed a little. They strode in silence, the sky darkening as they went. Eventually they reached the Pokémon center. Amy dropped Gary's hand on the way in, for some reason she was uncomfortable about Duplica seeing them holding hands like that. When she did see Duplica however, all thoughts of hand holding flew from her mind. Duplica was looking extremely apologetic... with a confused looking Wigglytuff beside her.

"I'm sorry Amy!" Duplica wailed, "Harmony started going through your stuff when I wasn't looking and found your moonstone and so now..." she trailed off and gestured to the Wigglytuff. Amy's jaw dropped.

"So... now I have a Wigglytuff," she mumbled.

"Apparently. She looks strong," Gary offered. Amy sighed, forced a smile, and told Duplica not to worry about it. She congratulated Harmony and assured her that she looked as cute as ever. The giant pink Pokémon squealed and danced in happiness, causing Amy to be reminded of Gary's victory dance and flushed maddeningly. At last Gary retreated to the bathroom down the hall with his pjs in order to change. Amy and Duplica changed in record time, because Duplica insisted that Amy divulge every detail of her date with Gary. It didn't take too long, but Duplica awed multiple times over the fact that they'd held hands the whole time.

"That's just so cute! Did you kiss?" she asked. Amy freaked out.

"NO!" she said defensively. Duplica seemed shocked.

"You do _want _to kiss him at some point... don't you?"

Amy blinked and shifted uncomfortably. "I guess I do... but... I'm also scared of it."

Duplica blinked, then smiled. "I'm sure you'll be a good kisser, don't worry!"

"It's not that!"

Duplica seemed confused. "Well... I'm sure Gary'll be a good kisser too..."

"Duplica! That's not it either!"

Duplica tilted her head. "Then what IS it?"

Amy sighed. "I'm... not actually that sure. I'm just afraid."

Duplica seemed to muse on this. "Maybe you're afraid of commitment."

Amy blinked. "What?"

Duplica explained, "Well, this would be your first kiss right? So for you, your first kiss will be something really special. Whoever you have it with, you'll remember them forever. So if it ends badly afterwards, like he dumps you, you'll be way more heartbroken then you'd be now. Also, if you want to dump him, you'll feel insanely guilty about it. You'll feel, well, committed to him. At least, that's what you'd think right now. Right now you feel like you can get out if you want to, but after you kiss, somehow the door will close. You just need to realise it's not like that."

Amy frowned. "I think... you might be right," she groaned. She felt Gary had been gone a long time and suddenly felt that he was probably listening right outside the door, probably in the same position she had taught him to take while eavesdropping. She decided if he was though, it hardly mattered if she continued at this point. "I don't know how you'd know my motives better than I do, but either way, I'm too scared to kiss him. I'm scared of him kissing me. I just want to take this really slow. That shouldn't be a problem right? Besides," she said looking closely at Duplica, "The first kiss is a commitment, it's... a rite of passage thing."

Duplica shrugged. "I guess."

"Have you had yours?"

Duplica nodded, smiling. "Yup, I was 10, it was an 11 year old boy who was always coming around my grandpa's flower shop in Goldenrod City."

Amy smiled. "Your grandpa owned a flower shop?"

Duplica laughed. "Yes, he stocked the perfume for the Goldenrod dept. store; why else would I like the stuff so much? I have a cultured nose for it."

Amy shook her head. "I guess that explains it then." They were silent for a while as Amy mused that it was more likely Duplica's nose had been desensitized to the smell of perfume rather than cultured for it. Then Gary knocked on the door, asking if it was safe to come in.

"We're decent!" Amy and Duplica replied in unison and he opened the door. As they made last preparations for bed Gary kept glancing awkwardly at Amy, making her very suspicious of him listening in. She decided to ignore it though, if she said nothing indicating she knew he was listening to her conversation, he couldn't comment about it.

*****

The next morning they woke bright and early, left some of their heavier stuff at the Pokémon center, and headed out towards the Safari Zone. They eagerly paid their way in and found each of themselves with a bucket of green Safari balls. Duplica told Gary and Amy that if they needed more balls they could use hers. She only wanted more Ditto so she didn't mind.

It was a fun day. Straight off they found a colony of Sandshrew and Gary made sure to catch one. He named it Lionel and the ball was sent to Prof. Oak. Amy was sure he'd be glad to get some Pokémon from them at last. She suddenly realised they had been out of contact for a while; they'd better call Pallet tonight. She mentioned this to Gary and he agreed.

By the time they stopped for lunch, Gary had caught the following: Sandshrew, Paras, Nidoran(male), Tauros, Krabby, Magikarp, Starly, Scyther and Rhyhorn(he was especially proud of this one since he ran out in front of it while it was stampeding to catch it, successfully making Amy feel like having a heart attack.)

Amy had caught a Feebas, Gloom, Venonat, Machop, Doduo, Ladyba, Numel and out of some strange bizarre twist of luck (Hopefully not all her luck for the day) a Chansey. She squealed over it, annoying Gary, worse so as Duplica had her own Pokémon to squeal over, a new Ditto she named MiniDit. She named it that because, as it became clear when they stopped for lunch and Harmony came out of her ball to eat, this Ditto could match a Pokémon's appearance, but not its size, creating something of a miniature version of the Pokemon being copied.

Therefore, they sat next to a miniature Wigglytuff for lunch. Amy felt wistful, remembering when Harmony was actually that size, but she had to move on. After all, she still hadn't captured a Dratini, and she was darn well going to! After lunch they tidied up and Amy headed for the lake, with Gary on her tail. As it turned out, Gary also wanted a dragon Pokemon. It wasn't that surprising.

The two trainers rented a row boat and if Amy didn't know better, she'd say Gary had somehow managed to sneak her into another romantic situation. They both took out their rented fishing rods and cast them into the water.

"So Amy," Gary smirked and Amy blanched.

"Wh-what?" she squeaked, suddenly aware of how isolated they seemed. There weren't many other boats in the lake, and Duplica had gone off... somewhere and left them apparently as Amy couldn't see her pigtailed friend on shore.

"Nothing, I was just sort of wondering if there was anything I could do to make you feel... more comfortable I guess?"

Amy tilted her head to one side. "Um, no I'm fine. The seat's a bit hard but-"

"No not like that," Gary rolled his eyes, "I mean with our relationship."

"Oh," Amy blinked and blushed. She'd been doing that an awful lot lately. "Um, I don't really know, I guess just..."

"Maybe," Gary took a breath before continuing, "Maybe it would be better if we just... kissed and got the first one over with."

"EXCUSE ME? N-NO!" Amy yelled and jumped back. The boat rocked.

"Hey! Okay, okay I'm sorry!" Gary gasped, grabbing Amy's arms and pulling her up so she wouldn't fall in. He pulled a bit hard though, so she tumbled forward into his chest. She looked at him with wide eyes and bit her lip.

"Um... thanks," she looked away, "So... how long does it take to catch a Dratini anyway?"

"A long time. I'm not even sure these rods are good enough to catch one to be honest with you," Gary sighed.

"Then... why did you have us come out here to fish for them?"

"To talk to you alone. Seriously, I know you're shy about kissing, but after you've done it once it shouldn't be hard anymore right?"

"I suppose so," Amy chewed her lip furiously. "L-look, maybe... maybe we could. Once, closed lips. And... and then we'll see."

"Okay," Gary grinned, "We'll go slow." He leaned forward and Amy forced her lips into an absurd pucker and squeezed her eyes shut. Gary chose not to let this deter him as he lightly pressed his lips against hers. She didn't move. As he drew back her lips lost some of the pucker and one of her eyes opened slightly. She looked kind of funny and Gary laughed a little.

"That's it then?" Amy managed to ask.

"See? No big deal."

"But we didn't really kiss for real, just sort of touched our lips together."

"Yeah, I guess," Gary looked away as his rod started tipping into the water. "Oh hey, a bite!" he grabbed his rod and started furiously trying to reel it in.

"Oh crap, watch it!" Amy clutched the side of the boat as whatever was on the lure pulled Gary's rod fiercely downward. Gary braced himself against the edge of the boat with his foot, but he was right when he cited the rods as not being very good as the line snapped and he went flying backwards, tipping the boat in the process. That would've been fine except just then a speed boat zoomed through the water at them, being driven by some crazy twenty somethings and being followed by Officer Jenny on a jetski. It was quite random and the waves they set off tipped the boat even further and sent Amy and Gary over into the water. Gary quickly kicked off his shoes and swam up to the surface, but realised that Amy hadn't and dove back down to find her. He saw her floating and grabbed her into his arms, yanking her to the surface with him. Then the speed boat made a turn and was heading straight for them, apparently not realising they were in the water. How they had gotten a speedboat into the park in the first place was anybody's guess, and Gary wasn't getting them out of the way fast enough.

Then he felt something large and slick appear beneath his feet and rise out of the water with him and Amy on its back. As they rose, Amy opened her eyes blearily.

"A-a Dragonair? What the-?"

"I have no idea," Gary said blankly.

"Sweet! I'm catching it!" Amy grinned as the Speedboat passed beneath them, crashing into the shore as the driver looked up to see the giant dragon pokemon rising from the deep.

"What? No don't-!" Gary gasped at Amy's stupidity as she took a Safari ball from her pocket and touched it to Dragonair's back. The red light flashed and their ride disappeared from beneath them. They plummeted back into the water. Perhaps the Dragonair was also shocked at Amy's stupid action, as somehow it remained inside the Safari ball. Either that or it was the unique design of the Safari ball that caught a pokemon not based on its level of health left in the Pokemon, but on a random chance depending on the Pokemon in question. In Safari Zone all pokemon are tagged with special tracers that the Safari Ball reads and then decides the probability of whether it will work or not. That was why only Safari balls could be used in the park, it was to make things fair. They weren't allowed to weaken pokemon in the park through battling after all.

Exposition aside, Amy caught Dragonair, and now they were stranded in the water again.

"What the heck were you thinking?" Gary glared as he treaded water. Amy had by this point also kicked off her shoes and was trying to side stroke to shore.

"Um... I wasn't?" Amy said sheepishly clutching the green ball. Gary groaned and joined her on the long swim to shore. They might not have made it if Officer Jenny hadn't noticed them and driven her jetski back to pick them up, telling them that they were very lucky and they should've been wearing life jackets for crying out loud! Gary pointed out that those weren't available for rental and Jenny made a note to inspect the water safety in this park much more thoroughly.

Duplica appeared again then, sipping a drink and asked why they decided to go for a swim in their clothes.

*****

At the Pokémon Center, Amy and Gary refined their Pokémon teams. Now Gary had Lucian, Socrates and Casper(who had recovered from his Sabrina gym battle incidentally), but had traded Slasher for Lionel the Sandshrew, Roger for Hercules (the Rhyhorn) and Sting for Reaper (the Scyther).

Amy now had Isis, Gabriel, Harmony and Avion, but had traded Opal for Hope (Chansey), and Quasar for the magnificent Dragonair that saved her life. She had named the creature Selene and couldn't express her gratitude. Deciding that they had time, they headed for the Fuchsia gym and Amy was pumped, excited to see Selene in battle. They reached the gym and walked inside, Duplica immediately running into an invisible wall.

"What the hell?" Duplica groaned, knocking on the barrier. Amy checked the guide book.

"It says here that in order to face the gym leader Koga you have to first pass his invisible maze," Amy read.

"Now you tell me," Duplica grumbled. It took about one and a half frustrating hours to work their way around the seemingly empty room, by then making it dark outside. Eventually though, they made it to the other side and went to open the door to the next room. They then fell through a trapdoor in the floor beneath them.

"AAAAAHHH!!!" They all screamed. Then they landed in a pile of cushions. It was a dark room, but soon a spotlight illuminated the gym leader Koga across the room.

"Which of you wishes to face me?" he whispered, but the sound carried.

Amy and Gary stood. "We do," they answered together, glancing at each other.

"I'm just watching!" Duplica said, snuggling down in the cushions. Koga viewed Gary and Amy carefully before he asked for someone named Janine. A girl came out of the dark before him.

"Yes master Koga?" she asked.

"I wish for you to fight this battle with me."

"Yes master!" she eagerly replied.

"What? But two against one isn't fair," Amy stated in confusion

"I think he means to battle us together, in a double battle," Gary explained, though himself bewildered.

"Indeed, 2 on 2, first team to lose a Pokémon loses the match" Koga announced. Amy was nervous, but it was gym leader's choice how he fights.

They faced off. The gym leader and his pupil showed their Pokémon first, two Venemoths. Amy had wanted to use Selene, but the room was confining. Besides, she knew what she and Gary would have to use if they were battling together.

"Socrates!"

"Isis!" The two Eevees faced the two Venemoths on the field, and the fight began. It was quite the show. Isis and Socrates jumped, bit and clawed. The Venemoths danced in the air, using powders and double team to confuse their opponents. There were several good hits, but the majority were on Isis and Socrates. It was looking bad. But then they started to glow.

"No way," Amy whispered in awe.

"I don't believe it," Gary said with a low whistle. Socrates stopped first. He was now black with yellow circles, an Umbreon.

Then Isis changed. She was blue with long black ears. A Glaceon.

"Woah, woah, woah," Gary stopped and shook his head. "How the heck is that possible? That's not how Eevee evolve! Either you use an elemental stone to get Jolteon, Flareon or Vaporeon, or else you train it during the day to get Espeon or night to get Umbreon. The other two... doesn't it have to level up in a specific environment?"

"I guess," Amy shrugged. "Do we really have to question it? Really? Because I really wanted a Glaceon."

"No! This doesn't make sense at all!" Gary snapped.

"Are you two still battling?" Janine asked in an annoyed tone.

"Yes!" Amy nodded. "Come on Gary, please, please ignore it!"

"How am I supposed to ignore-" Gary's words were cut off as Amy flung herself at him and pressed a closed lipped kiss to his lips. That shut him up and Duplica squealed wildly. Amy even smiled a little, deciding that kissing perhaps wasn't so terrible a concept after all.

"So, what was your problem with Glaceon?"

"That it couldn't possibly have evolved like that," Gary said firmly, smirking, "But I guess I can ignore it until the battle is over anyway."

Therefore the battle raged on. Socrates now sent a few excellent Faint attacks and Isis unleashed a powerful blast of Blizzard once she figured out her new internal workings. Socrates knocked the Venemoths out of the air and Isis finished them off. Amy was so happy that she didn't even mind when Gary swept her into his victory dance. They were dancing very close though she noticed. Gary pulled her closer and kissed her again, a much more natural one then the first two. They were getting better at this, she noticed as Koga stood awkwardly with the badges in hand. Once they had grabbed them and had been shown the exit, Gary took Amy's hand and smiled before going on with his rant.

"No, seriously, the only documented cases of Eevees evolving into Leafeon or Glaceon are in the Sinnoh region in this one forest or up near Snowpoint City, how could-"

"Oh wait, I think that was me," Duplica said suddenly.

"...what," Gary said flatly as he turned to her.

"Well, yesterday when I was taking care of your Pokemon, this really cute boy from the Sinnoh region came by the center for a bit and we got to talking. He gave me this Pokemon food he said I should try out before he left. I gave it to Isis and she ate it, but it looked sort of dirty, maybe it had some Sinnoh soil and-"

"No," Gary shook his head.

"It could happen!" Amy gasped, eager to accept this deus ex machina.

"No it couldn't," Gary replied.

"Stop being so picky!" Amy snapped, starting to get annoyed.

"Stop trying to make your impossibility seem plausible then!" Gary glared.

"Guys, guys, calm down!" Duplica moaned, "You were just becoming like a real couple, don't screw it up!"

"... fine. Be unrealistic idiots then," Gary muttered, crossing his arms but consenting to this complete massacre of the laws of the universe this time at least.

*****

The group found that their level of fatigue had caught up with them by the time they reached the pokemon center and practically collapsed into their beds. They slept in so late the next day they had to run to catch the ferry to the Seafoam Islands, which was their next stop.

They stood on the deck looking out over the water, Duplica with her Ditto and MiniDit and Gary with his arm around a consenting Amy's waist. She was smiling and kept smiling as Gary freely leaning it to brush her cheek with his lips.

He then whispered in her ear, "Gramps sent us tickets to the Sand Stone five star hotel in Seafoam. Surprise!"

Amy's eyes flew open and she spun to face Gary. Sand Stone was the most famous luxury hotel in the Kanto region. "Seriously?

"Seriously."

"EEK! YES!" Amy screamed and threw her arms around Gary's neck, quickly babbling over his shoulder to Duplica over what he's just said. Duplica screamed as well and started doing a happy dance with her Dittos. Things were shaping up very well indeed.

_((Joyful Note: Wow. I just rewrote the whole second half of this chapter in such a way as I'll have to rewrite a whole slew of things in future parts. Oh well, it probably sucks either way, so I don't see a problem. Remember, the original version is on Quizilla under the same name if you want to compare. If you've read it there before, sorry if you liked that version better for some reason. I was younger then, and I think I can stand some more kissing now then my younger self could.))_


	18. Legend of the Ice Titan

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 18~The Legend of the Ice Titan**

Amy, Gary and Duplica stood eagerly on the ferry's deck as it approached the sunny resort of the Seafoam Islands. Gabriel and Ditto seemed equally glad to learn that they would be getting to chill out on a beach for a day or two. Amy was surprised that Gary was willing to take a few days rest from training, but decided not to comment and ruin her good fortune.

"I can't wait to try out my new swimsuit I got in Celadon!" Duplica said as she happily clapped her hands together. Amy giggled.

"And I can't wait for Amy to try outher new swimsuit from Celadon," Gary grinned. Amy elbowed him in the side, blushing furiously. As the ferry docked, the group raced toward the platform and prepared to disembark for some sand, surf and sun.

When they got off the ferry and headed for the hotel, Amy glanced up at the Twin Mountains that took up the sky at the north end of the island. They were tall, and Amy could see some snow at the top that wasn't obscured by clouds. She found it amazing that a place so hot and sunny could have snow anywhere on it, even though she knew that the higher you are the colder it gets. The mountains were almost identical, and apparently they held a sort of almost religious sway over the people on the island evoking many myths and legends. Amy was hoping to hear quite a few before she had to leave and if she could convince Gary and Duplica she knew she'd love to get a closer look as well. Actually, even if they refused she could always fly over on Selene and be back within an hour if she wanted to. It wasn't THAT far away. In any case, when they reached the glistening sand-white building decorated in palm trees and red flowers, all thoughts of snow left Amy's mind. This was like a mini paradise! They walked across the white marble floor decked with beautiful red sand rugs towards the check in desk. A lady sat behind it smiling, a cute blue bird Pokémon on a perch beside her. Gary told her who they were and how Prof. Oak had called ahead. The lady nodded and pulled up the information on the computer.

"Be sure to check out our fine restaurant and lovely pools!" the bird Pokémon squawked. Amy jumped.

"I-it just spoke!" Amy stammered.

The lady grinned. "Yes, this is Polly, my Chatot. It's very good at mimicking sound, but that's all he does. He isn't really talking. The manager taught him to say that for the guests, most people get a kick out of it."

"I'll say," Duplica laughed as Ditto squealed its name and transformed into a Chatot as well.

"Chatot!" squawked Ditto.

"Ditto!" squawked Chatot.

The trio and their Pokémon then headed up to their rooms. They had two suites, one with two double beds for Amy and Duplica and one with a queen-size bed for Gary. Amy decided to chalk up the bigger bed to having Prof. Oak as his grandpa. The rooms were beautiful, done up in pastels and sandy tropical hues. Ditto and Gabriel were jumping from bed to bed as Duplica took a shower. Gary was showering in his own room and Amy was flipping channels on the TV. She had grown up in a world of cable, so satellite TV was a whole new world of wow for her. She was perfectly entertained seeing about 3 seconds of every show possible, from Cooking with Combuskin to the Lifestyles of the Elite Four. In the middle of her channel surfing frenzy Amy stumbled upon a program for Seafoam Island activates, a channel specific to the hotel.

"When you aren't checking out the beach, be sure to visit the fairgrounds in the valley between the Ice Cave Mountains!" said a woman with bright yellow hair and a microphone on the screen. She was standing in the middle of a carnival with shops, games, a Ferris wheel and other rides in the background. "All week there'll be laser shows and fireworks at night and entertainers from all over the Kanto region coming to participate in the Festival of the Ice Titan!"

_Festival of the Ice Titan_? Amy thought puzzled. It was then that Duplica came out of the bathroom, hair wet and seeming refreshed. She had a towel wrapped tightly around her. Amy looked respectfully away as Duplica pulled on her clothes. "Hey, the TV says there's a festival going on this week up by the mountains, we should check it out."

"A festival? Cool! What's it for?" Duplica asked as she finished pulling on her clothes and plopped down beside Amy.

"Apparently it's called the Festival of the Ice Titan."

"The Ice Titan?" Duplica asked confused. Amy shrugged to indicate that she had no idea either. She then headed into the bathroom for her own shower. The bathroom was done up in white marble. Amy dropped her clothes by the sink and climbed over the rim of the whirlpool tub, pulled the white curtain closed and turned on the water. The water pounded down in hot waves, and Amy felt pure bliss as grime washed off her.

*

20 minutes later Amy got out of the shower, feeling completely rejuvenated. She grabbed a towel, wrung out her hair and then wrapped the towel firmly around her before stepping out of the bathroom. One look in the room she ran back into the bathroom blushing furiously.

"GARY GET OUT OF HERE!" she yelled through the door.

"SORRY!" Gary yelled back and made a show of making lots of noise opening the door to his suit and slamming it shut. Duplica was still snorting with laughter as Amy came out, carefully.

"That was not funny!" she snapped as she grabbed her clothes and began getting into them. They were a pair of dark blue capries and a sky blue sleeveless top. After Duplica had calmed herself they let Gary come back in. Duplica had already explained the festival and Gary said he wanted to check it out as well.

"But we can't get there in time for lasers today, it's the other side of the island, we should probably just hit the beach till dark and then-" Gary started but Amy shook her head.

"We can make it, if we ride Selene," Amy said with a smile.

"You think she can carry all of us?" Duplica asked with a small frown.

"She's a Dragonair, and a big one, she could carry us and more," Gary said smirking. "That's a good idea Amy, let's go!" Amy grinned in response as Ditto and Gabriel shouted their own agreement.

*****

So, only a few minutes later they were outside the hotel. It was pretty deserted, with only a few tourists taking pictures. Amy released Selene who was indeed big, about four meters long. None the less, it did seem a little precarious putting three humans on her back considering that the secret of Dragonair flight is a little obscure. Its wings are on the sides of its head, but really there isn't any logical way for them to hold up its body.

Amy got on first, with Gary behind her and Duplica in the back. Gabriel and Ditto had been put inside their Pokeballs to save Selene their small weight at least. Besides, Gabriel tended to wander so it was probably best to prevent the possibility of him falling off the dragon Pokémon.

They took off into the sky and headed for the mountains. Amy was thrilled to be in the air again and didn't even try to look down, eyes trained on the horizon. Gary was hugging her around the waist and buried his face in her hair. She felt awkward, but didn't say anything, not because she couldn't think of anything to say but because they were going to fast the words would have been snatched out of her mouth by the wind.

They saw the fairgrounds up ahead and did a wide loop around them before setting themselves down. Amy hopped off and hugged her Pokémon happily. Gary got down as well and then they both helped a very shaky Duplica down as well.

"We got up in the air and I suddenly remembered I was afraid of heights!" she whined and Amy stared at her.

"Are you serious?" Amy gaped and Duplica nodded glumly, still shaking.

"HOW DARE YOU FLY HERE?!" came an angry yell from behind them. The three turned, confused. There was an old man shaking a cane at them. A young man with rippling biceps and spiked blond hair was holding him back.

"Calm down grandpa, they're probably tourists. They wouldn't know all the traditions-" but the old man cut the young man off, a small crowd was forming to find out what the commotion was about.

"YOU'VE CURSED US ALL! THE ICE TITAN! YOU'VE ANGERED THE ICE TITAN!" the old man hollered.

"Grandpa, calm down, really, shh, you're making a scene," the young man said, flushing as he pulled the man back. A girl with short brown hair came over and took the old man's arm gently.

"Come on grandpa. I'll take him Tory," the girl told the boy.

"Thanks sis," he said with a smile. She took the still raving man away. Tory approached Amy, Gary and Duplica, who were standing stunned. Tory seemed apologetic. Amy returned Selene to hear what he had to say. He laughed awkwardly. "Hey, um, sorry about my grandpa, he's a little senile. My sister Jess will take care of him though."

"It's okay," Amy laughed a bit too, but not much.

"Why'd he say we've cursed you all?" Duplica asked seriously. Gary raised his eyebrow at her.

"He's senile, didn't you hear the guy?"

Amy shook her head. "Even delusions have a basis on something."

Tory nodded. "Yeah, it's just a legend around here that during the Festival of the Ice Titan, if the ice titan sees anything flying through the air between the mountains he'll get angry and let loose a torrent of snow and ice that would cover the island and spread across the Kanto region, killing all life and so it will remain for 100 years. But that hasn't happened yet and plenty of tourists have accidently flown between the mountains before, nothing to worry about," he laughed.

Gary joined in his laughter. "People sure get crazy about myths."

Duplica frowned. "Well maybe the Ice Titan just hasn't happened to notice yet, or maybe he'd be more mad if it were a certain type of Pokémon, or a really big thing, or something that makes a lot of noise, maybe it isn't just anything, maybe only specific things in his air space make him mad and that thing hasn't come by yet."

"You and my grandpa would have a lot to talk about when it comes to that," Tory snorted, causing Duplica to flush brightly.

"All I'm saying is that sometimes myths are true!"

"Since when?" Gary snapped. Amy decided to intervene a little.

"What IS the Ice Titan anyway?" Amy asked Tory.

"It's said that the Ice Titan is the legendary bird of ice, Articuno. He's supposed to control all the snow and ice of the world," Tory explained.

"And so he lives in one of the most tropical areas in the region?" Gary scoffed. Tory grinned.

"Yeah I know, but these are the highest mountains in the region, and so the top of them is the coldest part of the region if you can believe it. Actually, Kanto has a pretty mild climate all over, except for in the Seafoam and Cinnabar islands. We're all tropical, except for the tops of these mountains." Tory said looking up. The others following his gaze. The mountains did seem extremely high from here, and were eerily beautiful as the setting sun reflected off them. "Oh, I haven't introduced myself!" Tory mentioned with a start. "I'm Tory, my sister and I live nearby with our grandpa. We help co-ordinate this festival every year."

"Oh, I'm Amy, this is Duplica and Gary," Amy explained.

"Gary OAK, grandson of the famous Prof. Samuel Oak," Gary elaborated with his trademark smirk, causing Amy to suppress a groan and the urge to slap her forehead in disgust.

Suddenly there was a flash of light and Gabriel popped out of his ball. Amy picked him up. "And this is Gabriel, my Cubone!"

Tory stared. "What's wrong with his arms?" Tory asked, obviously indicating Gabriel's long blades that replaced his paws.

"Oh, we had a little accident with a prototype transfer machine, some Rockets, and Sneasel DNA. But it's fine, Gabriel doesn't mind, and now he can use ice moves!" Duplica explained. Tory blinked.

"I've got to hear this story."

"Okay, we'll tell you in line for the Ferris wheel. Oh wait Duplica you're afraid of heights right?" Amy said looking at her pigtailed friend.

"Oh, only when there's nothing supporting what I'm on besides air, and if we're moving really fast." Duplica giggled nervously. Amy sighed, and then smiled.

"To the Ferris wheel then!" she announced and they headed over as the three explained their little adventure in Saffron, which led to the rest of their Rocket exploits, and about Lance. When they neared their turn in line, Duplica let slip that Lance had gone to Cinnabar, and so Amy also mentioned to Tory and the rest that she wondered if Lance had succeeded in stopping Team Rocket, they hadn't heard anything about it in quite a while.

"I'm sure he's fine! It's LANCE we're talking about!" Duplica said certainly.

"He's only one guy Duplica. Sorry to say it, but when we get to Cinnabar I'm going to start asking around," Amy said biting her lip.

"I'm not sure that's such a good idea, if there are Rockets around then you could get captured like you were before if you start asking the wrong questions. Besides, what if you're recognised there?" Tory pointed out.

"Then we're going to get our badges first, then ask questions. That way we won't have any reason to stick around," Gary said flashing a grin. Amy shook her head in disbelief, but smiled all the same. They didn't speak any more of it and soon they were on the Ferris wheel. Gary and Amy were in one seat, Duplica and Tory were in another. The sun set as they were going around and all the carnival lights came on. It was really beautiful. Gary slipped his arm around Amy's shoulders and she leaned against him, blushing but strangely comfortable with the situation.

After the Ferris wheel Duplica squealed to Amy that Tory asked her to go on a date with him tomorrow down by the beach and she wanted Amy and Gary to double date with her. They obviously agreed. The four of them went down to the field by the lake then and watched as first a cloud of white dust was sent into the air, and then laser beams were traced over it in extremely fast speeds, creating animations of Pokémon running, swimming, flying, battling etc. Amy couldn't believe how amazing it was and wondered at human technology. Then Gary pulled her close to him. Amy glanced over at Duplica and Tory who were actually making out. Right there. She glanced at Gary and saw that look in his eyes. She quickly tried to figure out what to do in this situation, but was surprised when Gary leaned in for a single closed lip kiss. Then he drew back, smirked, and turned back to the show. Amy stared, shocked that she felt a bit... disappointed.

*****

Duplica parted from Tory unwillingly, only after he promised to be at his front door (he'd given them his address) right at 10am the next morning. They were well outside the mountain valley before Amy dared release Selene again for a quick ride back to the hotel.

In their rooms, Amy and Duplica watched some more TV. They were watching Duplica's favourite soap opera that she hadn't seen in forever, PokePals, so Gary retreated to his own room to watch Pokémon battles or something presumably. During commercial breaks Duplica gushed about how Tory seemed fascinated by her flower shop that her grandparents owned, and how he surfs, and how he smiled so cutely, and how he was an amazing kisser, and how he actually believes Articuno exists, even if maybe he's not the ruler of all snow and ice and won't really ever destroy Kanto and how and how and how... it seemed to go on forever until the show came back on and she fell into rapt silence.

Amy decided to avoid another bombardment of fun Tory facts once the show was over by telling Duplica that she would be retrieving Gary now that the soap opera terror had finished. She opened the door.... and found Gary on his stomach on the bed in boxers watching TV. Amy flushed and covered her eyes.

"What the hell are you doing in your underwear?" she whined, backing through the doorway.

"It's hot in case you haven't noticed. And anyway, this is pretty much the equivalent of what I'll be wearing at the beach tomorrow, are you going to close your eyes that whole time too?"

"Maybe. I was going to invite you back in now but if you come you'd better have some clothes on!" Amy snapped before closing the door again and sighing.

"Well that was hilarious," Duplica said with a grin. She had been collapsed in a fit of silent giggles since Amy used the word 'underwear'. Amy threw a pillow at her. Gary did come back for another program, but then retired to his own room. They fell asleep easily as it had been a long day. Tomorrow though, would be a hell of a lot longer.

*****

The next day they picked up Tory on Selene and headed over to the beach, Tory's family owned their own private lot. They wore their bathing suits under their clothes, which they tore off after releasing their Pokémon for some fun in the sun. Tory said Jess might come by later in the day; she liked to sleep in though, so it wouldn't be for a while.

In any case, they had a great time. Selene took them on underwater rides; the other Pokémon splashed in the waves and they all played on the beach. Ditto and MiniDit were really starting to hit it off, and they all had a beach volleyball game. Total fantasy day. Amy couldn't remember ever having such relaxing fun in a group like this.

When the sun started edging for the west though, they changed into their clothes again to head for the fair grounds. Jess never did show up, but Tory said she probably headed for the Festival instead. They were right, she was there. Unfortunately though, this new trip to the fair was one that sort of ruined the fun day.

*****

After greeting Jess and making some minor peace with the grandfather who seemed to have relaxed a little now that it seemed pretty certain that if Articuno actually extracted revenge if it saw someone go through his air space he would have done something by now. Jess ran the concession stand, but Tory freelanced so he could take them around to all the other rides and games. Tory was experienced and quickly won Duplica an armload of stuffed animals from the games he knew weren't rigged, or from games where he knew the rig and could exploit the weaknesses of it. Gary of course found it more difficult and quickly found himself in a fit of rage trying to knock over a set of glasses. He threw ball after ball at them. Amy told him she really didn't need a stuffed Phanphy but he wouldn't listen. Apparently, now it was 'personal'.

"Gary come on, I would really rather go on rides then watch you not knock glasses down," Amy said with a groan. Tory and Duplica had run off nearly a quarter of an hour ago after Gary's 10th try and refusal to let anyone else have a go for him. He also refused to listen to Tory's advice for some reason. Gary seemed about to snap something back at Amy, but was interrupted by an explosion from above. Everyone looked up and some people screamed as a huge airship flew overhead. There was a huge red R on the side of the black craft.

"I'm willing to bet that's Team Rocket," Amy said, eyes wide.

"They sure know how to be subtle don't they?" Gary said with a wince. Flying beside the ship and firing hyper beams was Lance on a Dragonite.

"Oh hey, that's Lance!" Duplica's voice came over Amy's shoulder. She and Tory were back.

"You mean the Dragon Master?" Tory said squinting up.

"Yeah, I wonder what's going on?" Gary said as the fighters headed for the mountains.

"Maybe I can find out!" Amy piped in and released Selene. She jumped aboard and before she could take off Gary jumped on behind her. They climbed into the air beside Lance who looked surprised to see them.

"What are you doing here?" He asked in a shout as Dragonite continued to shoot the airship.

"Could ask you the same thing," Amy replied.

"Oh, well, Team Rocket found out I was on their tail so they're moving their boss out of the area."

"And he used this big a ship with a giant red R on it?" Gary shouted disbelievingly.

"I know, he's not known for being very subtle, he likes his luxury."

"Right," Amy said with a sigh.

"So you're trying to shoot him down?" Gary asked as Selene altered her movements to avoid getting in Dragonite's line of fire.

"Well, um, actually Dragonite's mad because the boss insulted his power and now I'm not exactly in control anymore," Lance said with a short laugh. Amy and Gary stared.

"You're kidding," Amy said slumping forward a little.

"I wish," Lance sighed. "Dragonite's in an Outrage now, so there's little I can really do. I mean, I'd recall him but then I'd fall so..."

"Well that must suck," Gary said as they passed between the mountains. Suddenly there was a loud cry and a blast of ice beam came straight at the group passing. The airship sped up and got away, but Lance and Dragonite got a full blast, and began to fall. Amy and Gary darted down and Selene tried to catch them, though they really dragged the pokemon down. Dragonite groaned, eyes blazing, and recovered to pursue the ship again, Lance dazedly riding. Gary and Amy were ready to pursue as well, but just then a great blue bird with sparkles of ice surrounding it flew into their line of vision.

"Arti-Articuno," Gary whispered.

"I think we're in trouble," Amy said softly. Articuno let loose another blast and then they were flying for their lives.


	19. An Icy Alliance, Battle in Flames

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 19~An Icy Alliance, Battle In Flames**

Articuno was approaching, screeching all the way. People were running for their lives. Selene had to duck low to beat an icy blast from Articuno's beak and Amy and Gary found themselves next to Duplica and Tory.

"Jess' trying to get Gramps to go home, can we hitch a ride maybe?" Tory asked and Amy nodded fiercely. They leapt aboard and they took off again. Suddenly the icy blasts stopped but the temperature seemed to be dropping. Amy looked back to see Articuno flying up to the top of the mountains as dark clouds formed around them. They began stretching across the sky and soon flakes started to fall.

"Oh my god," Amy whispered to herself as they headed for Tory's house, which was closest and ran inside. His grandpa was freaking out and burning everything in his house shrine to the Ice Titan in order to appease Articuno's rage. Amy was pretty sure that wasn't going to work, but figured a fire would keep them somewhat warm... unless the stories were completely true.

"Oh my god, we're going to die. And everyone in Kanto is going to die, because of us! Well you guys but-" Duplica whimpered and Gary's eyes flashed.

"How the hell is this OUR fault? Team Rocket were the ones flying a huge blimp through the air space and Lance's Dragonite was blasting away at it! WE flew through earlier and nothing happened at all!" Gary snapped.

"True," Tory sighed. "That hardly matters now though. The temperature keeps dropping like this and we'll all be goners."

Amy shook her head vigorously and stood, hands shaking. "NO! We are not just going to curl up here to die!"

"Then what do you propose? The storm's gotten worse, we can't cross water to another region like this... though I guess it's worth a try," Jess said thoughtfully gazing out the window.

"We aren't going to run away, leaving the rest of Kanto to its doom!" Amy growled.

"Um, then what ARE we going to do?" Gary asked raising an eyebrow.

Everyone looked up at Amy expectantly.

"Well..." Amy said biting her lip "I don't actually know," Everyone fell out of their seats.

"Great," Duplica moaned from the floor.

"Oh wait I've got it!" Amy said smacking her fist into her palm. "We'll go talk to Articuno to get him to stop!"

"You can't talk to Articuno! He's at the top of the mountains, how the hell are you going to get up there?" Jess demanded.

"It's worth a try," Amy said expressionlessly.

"I suppose so," Jess sighed.

"So we're going up the mountain on Selene I'm assuming," Gary said sighing and rising to his feet.

"We?" Amy said blanching. She had meant to go alone.

"Of course we, you think we'd let you go alone?" Duplica snapped getting to her feet as well.

"Where Duplica goes I go!" Tory announced standing as well. Duplica giggled.

"I'd better stay here with grandpa in that case, or he might wander off on his own," Jess said glancing towards the shrine where her grandfather was still burning things like chairs.

"Right. Let's go then," Amy said and headed for the door. Then she ran back to dig out some old snow suits. It was FREEZING out.

*****

After bundling up in some old snow suits with lots of sweat shirts and sweaters, the gang of four headed out into the fierce blizzard. Before the power was knocked out a quick internet check confirmed their worst fears as it declared that the whole Kanto region's temperatures were dropping. For the good of all they had to calm the rogue Articuno.

Once outside Amy called out Selene. The only thing that kept Selene warm as they climbed aboard and flew up into the sky toward the mountains was her internal Dragon Fire that all dragons Pokémon possess. They raced for the mountains in the blinding snow guided by vague glimpses. Amy felt her face turn red as the wind whipped by her. When they reached the mountain Selene started going up fast. Luckily Tory had had foresight to pack oxygen masks to wear at the high altitude.

As they passed through the clouds at the top of the mountain however, Selene's strength gave out battling the blasts of wind and she fell into the snowy peak. Amy put her back in her Pokeball but they couldn't stop just yet. They began struggling up the steep slope, the wind flew by as they went and Duplica fell into the snow. They were wearing the masks and couldn't talk but Tory motioned for them to go on while he remained with Duplica. Amy and Gary looked at each other before going over to Duplica and helped lift her out of the snow. Tory grabbed her as well and they started to carry her up the mountain. No one was about to get left behind here. They broke through the cloud cover and saw a sky full of stars and sitting at the top of the mountain was Articuno whipping the storm around with his wings. The bad news was that he was on the opposite peak.

"What the HELL?" Gary shouted in anger at this turn of events, even through his mask. Sound didn't carry too far with the lack of air to travel in but Gary also waved his arms around in his show of rage, causing Articuno to look up and spot them. He screeched in anger and raised his wings above his head, ice beam energizing in his beak.

"NO!" they all shouted at once and held up their hands to stop him. Tory stepped forward and stood straight before bowing low to the great blue bird.

"Ice Titan Articuno! Sovereign of the Cold and Snow of the Earth! Please, listen to us before you continue this storm!" he shouted as loud as he could. He sounded muffled but Articuno seemed to hear all the same. He stopped the ice beam and then flew up towards the other peak. He landed beside them and stared at them intensely. Suddenly Amy could hear an echoing deep voice with an icy edge in her mind. A quick glance left and right confirmed that she wasn't the only one hearing it.

"Why have you come?"

"To stop you from freezing Kanto of course!" Gary snapped crossing his arms. Articuno ruffled his feathers in annoyance but Tory bowed deeply again and begged Articuno to excuse Gary, he's 'special'. That made Gary growl and everyone chuckle a little.

"Please, we know we invaded your airspace, we were wrong, can you please just forgive us this once and-" Duplica started breathlessly in the thin are but Articuno shook his big head.

"That isn't why I'm covering Kanto in ice. You invading my airspace has nothing to do with it. It is that great airship and blasting that passed through... clearly my land has been invaded by violent people and therefore I must exterminate so it can start anew," Articuno announced. Amy's jaw dropped.

"That's it? And you just noticed this now? You don't get out much do you?" Gary muttered. Amy frowned.

"Listen, you can't just go destroying all of us because of some violet people, there's mostly good people down here really!" Amy insisted.

"And so how would you propose I exterminate the villains of my land? I can't go looking everywhere for them, I govern the snow from these mountains."

"You don't have to; we know where they are, Cinnabar Island!" Tory said, his eyes brightening.

"So I just have to freeze Cinnabar?" Articuno questioned and Amy shook her head firmly.

"No, just... just come with us! Be on our side and help us stop them without hurting any innocent people, just stop the storm please!" Amy pleaded. Articuno regarded each of the teenagers in turn.

"...Alright. This time I will listen. But we must defeat these villains or I'm freezing Kanto. You got it?" Articuno said and all four of the teens nodded vigorously. A few minutes later the clouds vanished and the sun began to rise. Hopefully that will warm up the land a bit. In any case, after retrieving their bags from Tory's house(and a shocked Jess and grandpa)they soon found themselves flying across the sea on Articuno's back towards Cinnabar. They filled the great bird in on the plan as they went. The plan was mostly that Articuno would remain out of sight until they had spied around on the island a while (and gotten a couple of Volcano badges but they didn't actually mention that part) and after they'd got an idea where the bad guys were they'd report to Articuno. Then they'd get into battle, defeating the villainous menace once and for all. It wasn't too big on details.

"I'd like to find out what Team Rocket's evil plan is," Tory mused. "I mean, a volcano, moon stones, they're collecting power for something..."

"Well duh," Gary huffed. "I want to know what they're up to as well. It sounds dangerous, luckily we have a legendary Pokemon on our side."

"Actually," Articuno spoke up. "I'm as venerable as any other powerful ice type Pokémon when I'm away from my mountain causing region wide catastrophe. I can help sure, but don't expect me to save you single wingedly."

"Erm, right," Amy laughed nervously. She was not enjoying this situation. Now they were obligated to save the world without godly support? Doom clouds seemed to hang over her head. Well in any case, there was little they could do at the moment to change things, so they stopped a short ways from Cinnabar and changed Pokémon from Articuno to Selene and headed for the harbour port, which was quite busy. People were dancing about, going to the midway, selling and buying. They landed quickly and started doing the tourist thing around the crowds.

It was almost an hour before Duplica found what they had been searching for. Tory gave her a kiss as a reward. Gary and Amy high fived and they quickly ran towards... the gym. Only it was locked.

"OH GODDAMN IT WHY?" Gary cried and fell to his knees in total despair.

"WHY CAN'T WE JUST WALK INTO THE GYM AND BATTLE LIKE NORMAL PEOPLE?" Amy cried as well.

"Well... erm... what now then?" Tory asked with a short laugh.

"We find team Rocket of course!" Duplica said smiling.

"NO WE'RE FINDING THE GYM LEADER!" Gary and Amy shouted together.

"Um..." Tory trailed off at their glinting fiery eyes. Duplica was not terrified though. Instead she frowned and drilled holes with her own eyes.

"Guys... save the world, gym battle, save the world, gym battle. What's more important?"

"THE GYM BAT-" they started but Duplica whacked them both over the head.

"Save the world?" Gary guessed and Duplica nodded and gave him a random cookie.

"Good job, Amy?" she rounded on her.

"Save the world. I knew that. Urg, Gary must be rubbing off on me I guess," Amy laughed.

*****

The four set to work attempting to spy. Unfortunately they were cornered by a hippie. This was not their day.

"Sure you don't want to buy some good luck charms?" the hippie croaked. Gary's eyes blazed.

"NO WE DONT WANT TO BUY A GOOD LUCK CHARM!" he screamed.

"Calm down Gary. Look mister, we just got into town and found out the gym was closed so we aren't really in the mood to buy anything right now," Tory explained.

"Oh, by the way, have you seen anyone acting suspicious lately?" Duplica asked. Amy's eyes widened. She didn't think it was a good idea to ask questions like that but this wasn't a position where she could freely oppose Duplica.

"Suspicious? Can't say I have..." the hippie said slowly, but Amy got the feeling he wasn't telling the truth.

"Well, thanks anyway," Amy sighed, though unsure what she was thanking him for.

"Sure you don't want a charm?"

"Only if it'll charm you away," Amy mumbled, but the hippie seemed to hear.

"Oh sure it will! Buy a charm and I'll stay totally out of your sight or your money back!"

Gary growled. "Okay fine!"

"Pick the blue star there then Gary," Amy said pointing to the hippie's merchandise.

"Fine, one blue star thing."

"Great! That'll be 2000 yen!"

"ARE YOU CRAZY? I'M NOT PAYING THAT!" Gary yelled, storming away. Tory, Duplica and Amy looked at each other, and then took off after him, ditching the hippie.

*****

They checked into a hotel. Then they found out the hippie ran it and didn't give refunds so they wound up each buying a charm to keep him away from them as they enjoyed the hot spring out back, which was apparently naturally heated by the volcano.

"I wonder how long Articuno's going to wait for us to find out where Team Rocket is hiding?" Tory said quietly in the water.

"I hope he'll give us another day at least, today was a totally wash out," Duplica sighed, leaning against Tory's chest.

"I'm sure he will. But I wouldn't give his patience much more cushion time then a day. We'll have to work much harder tomorrow," Amy said firmly and Gary nodded besides her. Unnoticed he had been slowly closing the distance between them in the water since they entered.

"Excuse me, but did you kids just say something about Team Rocket? And Articuno?" the hippie appeared again.

"I thought the charms were supposed to keep you away? Gary grumbled.

"I lied," the hippie shrugged.

"It's nothing, just discussing events. You know the recent freeze was attributed to Articuno and Team Rocket flew between the mountains angering him... we were there you see," Tory smiled. The hippie viewed him closely.

"Alright kid... seems like a major thing to witness too. Well anyway..." the hippie coughed.

"Um, you wouldn't happen to know when the gym leader'll be coming back would you?" Amy asked.

The hippie hmmed and scratched his chin. "Well... I'd say he'll probably return when these new folk leave."

"New folk?" Duplica questioned.

"Oh yeah, a team of volcanologists set up a big headquarters up the mountain to study Mt. Cinnabar and were coming down to the gym all the time to battle. They weren't that good either, so Blaine the gym leader just locked up and left for a while until the heat died down if you'll pardon the pun."

"Erm, sure," Amy laughed as the hippie left. Then she turned to the others. "So... I guess that's probably Team Rocket?"

Tory sighed. "Probably, we should go check tomorrow."

"Definitely!" Gary grinned and put his arm around Amy whom he had succeeded in getting extremely near to. She froze and she was pulled against his naked chest.

"Gary... what are you doing?" she whined pulling back a little but he didn't let go.

"Aw come on, Tory and Duplica are cuddling!" Gary whined.

"Erm... I guess," Amy sighed and leaned in properly, though she felt extremely self conscious that Duplica and Tory were right there across from them.

*****

The next day they decided their best plan was to go up to the research center and find out for a fact whether this was Team Rocket or not. It would be bad if they just sent Articuno after them and it wasn't actually the bad guys. However, when they got up there it was pretty obvious who they were. The Rockets weren't even wearing disguises. They were walking around in black uniform all over.

"Inconspicuous they're not," Amy sighed to resounding nods.

So quickly they mugged some Rockets with Casper's Hypnotic assistance. Donning the uniforms and pulling the hats firmly to conceal their eyes they entered the building. They passed many a Rockets as they did so and eventually broke into a control room where Tory, who apparently was some sort of computer hacking wizard, (How lucky!) hacked the mainframe to find the objectives. All of their mouths dropped open when they discovered what Team Rocket planned to use all their acquired Moonstones for, and when.

"So all of that was planned? Even Lance and Articuno? They have to be kidding," Amy whispered.

"Somehow I doubt that," Tory sighed.

"But, would that seriously work?" Duplica asked, draping her arms around Tory's neck. He was sitting in the computer chair with the rest of the group standing around him.

"Does it matter? We still have to stop them!" Gary said crossing his arms. Amy nodded.

"Gary's right, now let's get out of here before we're cau-aww damn it," Amy groaned as she turned to see Butch and Cassidy glaring bullets at them, flanked by several other Rocket grunts.

"Hey, you're those twerps from before aren't you?" Butch said blinking in surprise "I see you've picked up another twerp as well..." Butch said in his gravelly voice.

"Hey yeah they are! Good work Broccoli!" Cassidy exclaimed.

"BUTCH! What the hell. Broccoli? That's just sad."

"Whatever. Anyway, I don't know how you managed to catch up to us again, but we can't have you getting in our way! Especially when we're so close to our goal. So I'm afraid we're going to have to keep you all in a holding cell until we can figure out what to do with you," Cassidy said in almost a bragging voice.

"I don't think so!" Gary snapped and pulled out his Pokeball... but it wouldn't open. Blinking in shock Amy and Duplica also checked their Pokeballs, to no avail. Tory didn't because he didn't have any Pokémon.

"I see our Pokeball blocking system is as functional as ever!" Butch said with a grin "It was developed so that only Rocket Pokeballs work inside the building!" he said pulling out a black Pokeball with a red R on it. He released a Venesaur which sent out many vines, binding the group tightly.

"Hey! Let us go!" Gary shouted struggling with the thick vines.

"Oh like that ever works!" Duplica yelled at Gary as she too struggled. Tory had turned white and suddenly sneezed.

"P-please stop, I'm a-allergic to grass Pokémon!" Tory said sneezing again. Amy was silent in thought trying to figure out how they could possibly get out of this as Venesaur lifted them all a little off the ground to carry them down the hallway. They could risk calling Articuno of course, but if they did that right here the Rockets would hear of course and possibly be ready for him. They could not risk Articuno being captured by the likes of Team Rocket.

A voice from down the hall shouted. "ARCANINE! FLAMETHROWER!" One blast of fire later and Venesaur was smouldering and coughing. Amy, Duplica, Tory and Gary quickly ran toward where the voice had come from and stood facing... the hippie? Only his wig was off.

"Oh my god, YOU'RE Blaine?" Amy said jaw dropping open. She knew his face from her guidebook of course.

"Yes I am," he said briskly and proceeded to blast his way through the Rockets, clearing the way of escape for them. They ran.

"But, I thought Pokeballs didn't work in there?" Gary asked as they went.

"That's why I released Arcanine outside," Blaine grunted.

"Oh," Gary said blinking and blushing in embarrassment. "Of course," They made it outside and regrouped a short ways away inside a small cave. Blaine turned to them all.

"You'd all better be glad I followed you here, I thought you'd have more sense than to go charging straight in."

"We didn't charge! We snuck!" Duplica sniffed.

"Whatever. We know their plan now anyway," Tory said grimly.

"You do? What is it?" Blaine asked. They told him and his jaw dropped.

"But, but that's insanity. Are you sure you've got that right?" Blaine said softly.

Tory nodded. "It was in the files. That's really their plan."

"By the Fire Titan herself..." Blaine murmured. "And so Lance was involved by you because of them and he... so do you believe that they might have been trying to make you summon Articuno?"

"I hadn't thought of that, but it seems likely," Amy said growing white in the face.

"Well, you kids did good I guess finding out their plan, no way they expected you to hack the system since they weren't counting on Tory so they probably hadn't tricked you into doing that. But you guys should really move on out of here before the Rockets come after you again."

Amy shook her head. "We can't, we promised Articuno we'd help, if we don't help him stop the Rockets he'll freeze all of Kanto."

Blaine swore. "Alright... well... I still don't like this. I know! If you two beat me in a gym battle for two Volcano badges I'll see you as fit to help stop the Rockets. If not, no dice. I won't have rookies taking on these guys."

"No problem! We have six badges each already!" Gary said with a grin. Amy frowned.

"But they're planning to complete their plan tomorrow night, do we have time for this?"

"I think so, but Duplica and I'll try hacking from an outside source in the meantime, we'll try the Pokémon center's computer and meet you guys in the gym later?" Tory said but Blaine shook his head.

"We're not going to the gym. We'll use my secondary training field," he said and hit a rock at the back of the cave. The back of the cave opened like a door and they found themselves entering a small chamber. The door shut and the lights turned on. It was a little safe house, with a computer. Tory and Duplica headed for that, while Blaine took Amy and Gary through to the next room... a field suspending over a vast pit of lava.

"Oh wow," Amy said and Gary whistled. It was really hot in there too.

"So, who will battle be first?" Blaine asked once he'd crossed the field and taken his place on the opposite side.

"I will," Gary said taking the opposite side.

"This will be a three on three Pokémon battle," Blaine said and released his first Pokémon, a Rhydon. Not a fire type but probably had fire moves.

"Okay, go Lucian!" Gary called out, releasing his Wartortle onto the field. Battle commenced. Lucian dodged Rock Throws, Take Downs and Fire Blasts while Rhydon dodged a constant stream of water moves, only getting a few grazes and nothing major. Gary seemed afraid to use Skull Bash or anything that would get Lucian too close to Rhydon. Then Lucian got hit by a flying rock and flew off the field, heading straight for the lava.

"RETURN!" Gary shouted and the red light caught Lucian just in time. He wasn't unconscious though so it counted as a switch out, not a faint. Next Gary let Hercules, his Rhyhorn. Onto the field. This might have been a bad choice considering he hadn't actually used Hercules before. The rock type faced its evolution and Gary ordered a Take Down. Amy couldn't look... And then Gary cheered. She peeked through her fingers to see two Rhydons... Hercules had evolved. Go figure. So after a great wrestling match it was found that Lucian had worn Blaine's Rhydon down enough for Hercules to knock him out. Much cheering from Gary as Rhydon was recalled and Blaine's next Pokémon, a Flareon. The fire feline looked pretty miniscule next to Hercules, but Amy decided it was probably pretty strong. She hoped Gary would decide the same.  
Well... Hercules decided that it wasn't worth his time and laughed as he poked it. Hercules was pretty charred when he fainted.... So, Gary decided to send out Socrates, his previous Eevee now Umbreon. He burst forth onto the field and coursed with dark energy ready to be unleashed.

"Faint Attack!" Gary yelled and Umbreon raced forward. Flareon bristled her fur and Blaine called for Quick Attack. They met head on and bounced back, each with small scars.

"Flamethrower!"

"Go right through it and use Crunch!"

Socrates moved so fast the flames seemed to part for him as he attacked Flareon, driving his teeth into her shoulder. Dark energy coursed from Socrates to Flareon, and the fire Pokémon fell. Blaine smiled and called forth his final Pokémon... it jumped out of the lava. It was Magmar, and Gary paled as it made 3 second mince meat out of Socrates. The Umbreon lay still, but Amy could at least tell it was breathing as it was returned. Since Gary had switched out earlier, he only had one choice.

"LUCIAN!" The Wartortle surged out and now the two Pokémon were in combat. Fire and water met and sizzled in midair. Both were taking on heavy damage too. Things were looking bad for Lucian... Then Blastoise took care of Magmar. This was Gary's day for good timed evolutions.

Next was Amy. From her side came Isis the Glaceon, Gabriel the mutant Cubone. From Blaine came Rapidash and Arcanine. Fierce battling actually, shockingly, ended in two epic tied faints. It was time for the final battle.

"Go Selene!" Amy called and the Dragonair twisted into the air. Blaine seemed highly impressed.

"Excellent, I never would have thought you'd have... well I'll just have to do my best won't I?" he chuckled and sent out his final Pokémon, Ninetails. Amy froze, attack words caught in her throat. Obviously this wasn't the Ninetails her mother had owned... well at least it was highly unlikely. But it still evoked a lot of sad memories. Amy stepped back a little. How could she fight this Ninetails? It'd be like... fighting her mom? She wasn't sure, but she couldn't call an attack and Blaine hadn't noticed Amy's distress.

"FIRE BLAST!"

Dragonair looked to her frozen trainer waited for an order, but none came she was hit directly. She cried out and fell to the field's floor in pain. Amy snapped out of it "Selene! Are you okay?" a small cry in response "Oh no, I'm so sorry!" Amy said frantically trying to compose herself. Then Duplica and Tory burst into the room.

"You guys! They know about this place! They caught me hacking a traced me! We have to get out now, maybe Selene... okay apparently not," Tory said blinking at the burnt dragon.

"Too late anyway," Gary said pointing at the Rockets that were storming into the room.

_((Joyful Note: Um... so I made Articuno talk. He's a legendary so I thought I could get away with it... and let's face it, when the pokemon can't talk it makes negotiations fairly difficult. I hope no one has any major issues with this.))_


	20. Blaze of Glory, Sailing Home

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 20~Blaze of Glory, Sailing Home**

_((Joyful Note: Hi. I know it's been a while, but it's May. Lots of homework. I consider myself justified in putting it before editing this))_

To recap, Butch and Cassidy, flanked by Rockets and Pokémon to capture our heroes, had them cornered in the middle of a volcano and all their best Pokemon were too worn out to fight... not good.

"Damn its Bon and Cassidy," Gary groaned.

"Isn't it Butch?" Amy said blinking.

"OKAY WHY IS THAT GIRL THE ONLY ONE WHO EVER GETS MY NAME RIGHT?"

About 15 minutes later the group of kids had been stripped of possessions and Pokémon and lobbed into a prison cell in the Rocket Research Lab. Not a good day really. Blaine somehow managed to sneak away in the confusion though. The ditcher.

"I can't believe this! How did this happen?"Duplica cried, rattling the bars.

"Well maybe it wouldn't have happened if we'd fought Team Rocket BEFORE we trounced Blaine in back to back gym battles!" Amy snapped in anger. Duplica backed away from her rage.

"Chill out Amy. We're in trouble but we can get out of this if we just relax okay?" Gary said putting his hand on her shoulder. She twitched.

"Right, relax, like that'll work," she muttered sarcastically.

"Actually, I'd appreciate it if you'd give me a hand back here first," a crackling voice groaned from behind them. They all turned in unison to find Lance sitting, looking extremely beat up, at the back of the cell.

"LANCE!" Duplica cried and pretty much glomped the poor guy. "Are you okay?"

"I'm... fine? Who are you again?" Lance asked after wincing in pain at her hug.

"Duplica! Um, Ditto trainer? Met back in Vermillion?" Duplica said frowning at his memory lapse.

"Erm... oh yes I remember now. The one dressed like Officer Jenny," Lance said nodding.

"Yup that was me!" Duplica smiled.

Gary crouched beside the Lance. "What happened to you?"

"Well, after flying through the mountains, Dragonite got really tired and confused... he thrashed me around and I got knocked unconscious. When I woke up I had Rockets standing around me laughing and taunting... I was tied to a chair incidentally. They interrogated me for how much I knew as I'd been spying around here for a while and then I was thrown in here about 12 hours ago," Lance explained. Amy blinked.

"Did they fly through the mountain on purpose?" she asked after a moment. Lance nodded.

"They were trying to drive Articuno out and capture him, but the storm got too bad and when it cleared he was gone apparently," Lance explained.

"And they want to catch Articuno because they require a powerful ice Pokémon to open the gateway..." Amy said slowly recalling the computer hacking session.

"Can't they just use their own ice Pokémon?" Duplica asked.

"Yeah but I bet Articuno has more ice power then all of them put together," Gary said narrowing his eyes in thought.

"Yes, granted they could go steal some more but ultimately it would be easier to use Articuno, less Pokémon to hook up to the machine. Same reason as why they're using Lance's Dragonite as a dragon Pokémon, it's well known to be the most powerful dragon type known to this part of the world, aside from Rayquaza but good luck finding him," Tory explained. They all nodded. Suddenly Lance started

"Wait a second, they're using Dragonite?"

"Right, so, what are we supposed to do now?" Amy asked and they all lowered their heads in thought.

"I've got nothing," Gary sighed.

"Me either," Tory sighed as well. They others groaned. They were locked in a little cell. They had no Pokémon or equipment. Come tomorrow night Team Rocket's evil plan would be in motion. Doom clouds covered all.

Then a raspy voice came in through the bars. "So, you guys having fun in there?"

"Butch?" Amy said blinking.

"Yep!" and so it was. "I just wanted to let you all know that you'll have front row seats for the finale of our Moonstone plot, and then we were going to kill you-"

"WHAT?" everyone screamed but Butch waved his arms to silence them.

"I said we WERE going to kill you. But personally I didn't want the only person who ever remembers my name to die. So I talked to the boss and he was actually very supportive of the idea that anyone here who wants to join Team Rocket will be given membership! Except for Lance but that's because he's tried to stop us too often so we'll have to kill him," They all stared at the green haired Rocket. "You can thank me later," Butch said grinning.

"Like we'd ever join Team Rocket!" Gary snapped angrily.

"That's right, do you think we're insane?" Duplica growled in agreement. Amy nodded as well.

Tory however was quiet. The others seemed to notice and looked over at the surfer boy. He seemed to be thinking. Then he lifted his head and said, "Okay I'll join."

Everyone's eyes widened. "You can't be serious!" Duplica wailed.

"Come on, if we don't join we'll die! What choice is there?" Tory said weakly. Lance gaped.

"You can't just join them! They're evil!" he shouted.

"Where's your integrity?" Gary snapped.

Amy shook her head. "It's his choice. He doesn't want to die..." she sucked in her bottom lip. She obviously didn't want to die either. Butch was congratulating Tory on his great choice and trying to encourage the others to do the same. Ultimately, none of them could help anything stuck in death row. Maybe if they joined Team Rocket they could help stop them... hopefully before their plan was put into action. She wasn't sure how to get this point of view across to Duplica and Gary though and Lance... well they might be able to find a way to help him to if they escaped the cage.

"I'll join," Amy managed to choke out as normally as possible. Gary, Duplica and Lance stood agape at her.

"Perfect! I knew you weren't stupid Ari!" Butch said happily. She blinked.

"Um... my name's Amy..."

Butch stared. It was very awkward.

Gary's gaze steeled. "Amy... if you join Team Rocket, I'm breaking up with you."

Amy looked at him desperately, hoping her meaning would get across when she said, "Gary, I have to do this. WE have to do this," Gary looked at her. She looked back as intensely as she could manage. Was that a very faint sizzle of electricity? Then his eyes closed.

"Fine... I-I'll join too," he said gruffly. Duplica blinked in shock.

"B-but they're going to kill Lance!" she said softly. Lance sighed.

"Duplica... I appreciate your commitment to the side of good but... if you don't join you'll die. Don't let yourself die for my sake."

"Yeah Duplica!" Tory said taking her hand. "Please, I want to spend my life with you, despite having just met you! Come with me!"

"Duplica, please," Amy said clenching her fists to her sides.

"I... well..." Duplica's eyes teared up and she fiercely shook her head. "NO! I don't care if I die, I will never join Team Rocket! They're evil and I want nothing to do with them!" No amount of pleading would change her mind, but Butch didn't seem concerned. He led Amy, Gary and Tory out of their prison and towards the stairs. Other grunts came forward to congratulate them on their great choice. They all smiled awkwardly as they were lead over to be measured for their Rocket uniforms. They actually received their Pokémon back too, regarding the fact that a Rocket isn't a lot of use in battle if they don't have Pokémon to fight with.

They had a major shock upon discovering that Team Rocket had found Articuno circling Cinnabar in plain view and had captured him... not good obviously. The next day would be the Summoning. Amy thought over Team Rocket's plan as she had read it out on the screen when Tory hacked the file. When the full moon rose the following night, Team Rocket would hook up intensely strong Pokémon, one of each type to a machine. They'd collected one of each type of evolution stone, as well as many Moonstones and Sunstones. Sunstones were easy to buy but Moonstones are not on sale anywhere so they had to steal a lot of them. Their plan: to open a dimensional rift and release the most powerful Pokémon in existence, hoping to contain and control their power with special technology and the Sun and Moon Stones and take over the world.

These Pokémon were the legendary Pokémon of Light and Darkness, Sunraroes and Darentoes. Legends told that these Pokémon exist in a dimension parallel to ours, where only they exist. They are in a constant battle of Light vs. Darkness. Once, a long time ago, the fight grew so ferocious that they split the seams of time and space and plunged into the Pokémon world. They caused almost complete world destruction and to repair the rift and to send the Pokémon back to their dimension one powerful Pokémon of each type came together and sacrificed their energy to send the two Pokémon back to their battleground, but upon doing so their energy was used up and their bodies shattered and their life forces were poured into the rocks around, creating the elemental stones. If anything could control the Pokémon of Light or Darkness, these stones could.

Once they were put back into the rift though, the hole had to be closed. To do this one man, who was injured greatly in the battle, decided to give his life energy. He had a great spiritual presence and sent his soul from his body, using it to close the opening. Since then it has spent ages holding it together in a deep sleep. Team Rocket wanted to break the seal and release the forces of Light and Darkness. Amy worried what would happen if they succeeded

It wasn't long until they found out just what would happen in such a situation. Amy, Gary and Tory were standing with the rest of the Rockets. Duplica and Lance were tied up nearby. They were around the rim at the top of Cinnabar Volcano, intending to open the dimensional rift in the center cauldron of lava. Evenly spaced were special containers, each holding a Pokémon of a different type. This included Lance's Dragonite and Articuno, as well as Moltres, Raiku, and others, some containers held more than one Pokemon when one would've been too weak to work alone. It was time. You would have thought Giovanni would be here at such an important occasion, but he was apparently working on another project of his and didn't want to be in the vicinity if something went wrong.

Amy was feeling increasingly nauseous. She actually signed up to be on Team Rocket in order to maybe stop this from happening but it seemed like she could do absolutely nothing. There were Rockets everywhere, and Selene still hadn't recovered from her gym battle yet. This was not good. The moon was rising.

With the throw of a switch the cries from each Pokémon held rang out across the volcanic pit. They all began to glow, each in a different colour. Suddenly each stream of light burst from the casing and collected in the centre of the circle. There was a white flash followed by a glowing wind whipping around the stadium. The Rockets let out cheers, but Amy could barely contain her horror. Gary looked over and saw her distress. He grabbed onto her and held her against his chest. Amy's looked up at him in surprise, but ultimately ended up peering over his shoulder at the sight unfolding. Tory couldn't stand the act anymore and ran forward to shield a shrieking Duplica. Lance simply looked on in open wonder mixed with terror.

A loud roaring pierced the air. A screech of pain. A tearing. The glow faded, and the Pokémon around the vortex looked exhausted, many weren't conscious. Where the light was two gigantic Pokémon were left. One was Darentoes. The other Sunraroes. And they were in combat, seeming oblivious to the change of surroundings.

"ELEMENTAL STONE SHIELD ACTIVATE!" Cassidy yelled, grinning widely.

"RIGHT!" Butch yelled back and threw another switch. Suddenly the piles of elemental stones glowed bright and a large sphere encased the feuding Pokémon. The encasing seemed to be working to contain their power, and bright light and darkness swirled inside.

"Alright! Now we just need to open the sphere a little to release this energy and destroy our enemies! Team Rocket's reign begins now!" Cassidy shouted to the whoops of the crowd.

"GET AWAY FROM HERE YOU IDIOTS!" Lance suddenly roared, and the Rockets looked at him, some glaring, others curious. "That sphere may contain them for a little while but if you opened it even a little the power would blast it apart! These Pokémon don't have anything to do with our world, I don't think they even notice we're here, they just know to fight each other!"

"Shut up Lance! You're finished! Aim the sphere's opening at him Boof!" Cassidy yelled.

"BUTCH DAMN IT!" her partner yelled and slammed the button. The sphere exploded.

"LET'S GET OUT OF HERE!" Cassidy screamed and the Rockets started running for their lives. Tory quickly began untying Duplica while Gary and Amy rushed over to help Lance.

"What should we do?" Duplica asked her idol as blasts from the feuding pair demolished the rocks around them and caused the lava to boil and the ground to shake.

"HOW THE HELL SHOULD I KNOW?" Lance yelled and ran. Gary, Amy, Duplica and Tory stared at each other.

"So what now?" Gary asked.

"Now, you listen to me," a familiar voice said from behind. They quickly turned to see Blaine standing there.

"Tory, Duplica, go change the route of elemental stone energy in the machine from containment to opening the vortex."

"Uh, okay!" Tory said nodding, eager to do something to help. They went away.

"Okay, now I didn't get a chance to give these to you earlier but you deserve them. Here's your Volcano badges," Blaine said handing Amy and Gary each a badge shaped like a flame.

"Uh, this doesn't really seem like a good time," Gary said as Sunraroes let out a blast of energy that flew out into the sky, lighting it up as if daytime.

"There won't really be time after this," Blaine said with a sad smile.

"What do you mean?" Amy asked slowly.

"When the vortex opens, release all your Pokémon and have them sends blasts of attacks at Darentoes and Sunraroes to drive them into the light," Blaine said, sending out his fire Pokémon.

"Okay!" Gary and Amy said together and sent out their Pokémon teams. Selene, Isis, Socrates, and all the others.

"READY!" Tory yelled and flipped the switched. The blinding vortex was opened once more.

"GO!" Blaine, Gary and Amy cried. Attacks were issued, sending Sunraroes and Darentoes into the vortex, though they didn't seem to even notice the attacks were driving them, they were too absorbed in their own epic battle that had raged forever. Driven into the vortex Tory went to close it, turning off the energy input but the vortex remained open.

"What's wrong?" Duplica called to Blaine who sighed.

"Once inside, their power keep the doorway open. Only a human's life energy can close it again," he turned to his Pokémon. "You're free to leave," he said and they nodded, backing away respectfully. Blaine headed for the vortex.

"What? You can't be serious!" Tory called running toward him but Blaine's Arcanine ran forward and pushed him away.

"I'm an old man now, this is a fine way to go. The island's messed up anyway! All these tourists, you kids have fun and keep it hot!" Blaine said waving as he touched the vortex, not hearing the final cry from the teenagers questing what the hell 'keep it hot' was supposed to mean. The vortex closed. The small group stood in the silence, as all others had run.

"So... is he dead then?" Duplica asked in a small voice.

"I guess so," Amy said softly.

"So... we should free those Pokémon then now, right?" Tory said and the others nodded.

"Yeah let's go," Gary chimed in. They worked slowly, still in shock, but managed to release all the captives, allowing them to start heading away. Articuno spoke.

"I was not quite unconscious. I saw the battle and I think perhaps there will always be evil fighting good, in constant struggle. Myself killing all in my land will never fully eradicate evil and will also destroy much good. So I will not destroy Kanto, despite evil not being defeated," he stated before taking off for the Seafoam Islands.

"Isn't that what we were trying to tell him?" Amy said annoyed.

In any case, after they had freed the Pokémon they headed into the base. All was so quiet there... the Rockets had taken planes and helicopters trying to get away as fast as possible. They found their regular clothes, their belongings, and Duplica's Ditto. They had a happy reunion. Afterwards the group went to the docks. People were already worried as to what was going on and many were scared in this eerily silence after all the roaring and lights. They boarded a boat leaving for mainland near Pallet Town. In the calm after the storm, they sailed home.

_((Joyful Note: I know. I finished the climax, so what's left? I'll tell you what's left, a final part an epilogue introducing the sequel that's what! So stay tuned. Incidentally, I am really bad at wring romantic situations. I mean, I've been trying like all heck, but plot and such keeps me away from hardcore fluff. Hopefully I'll improve eventually... well, later days!))_


	21. Road to Viridian Again, The Last Badge

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 21~Road to Viridian Again, The Last Badge**

Amy, Gary, Duplica and Tory arrived in Pallet Town late the next day. Ditto rode on Duplica's shoulder and Gabriel was happily walking by Amy's feet once more.

"Wow, it feels like we haven't been here in forever, huh?" Amy said in wonder as they walked along the dirt road. She honestly felt a little sick about this; she hadn't spoken to her dad since he freaked out on her way out of this town... she wasn't sure she'd really be accepted with open arms. Gary seemed to sense her discomfort.

"Uh, I think we should go see my gramps first, if you don't mind, Amy," Gary suggested and Amy breathed a sigh of relief.

"That's fine with me," she said with a smile.

"So this is where you guys grew up?" Tory said, looking around at the houses on both sides and the few people out in their yards. Several of them waved and welcomed Gary and Amy back home. They waved back.

"Yep, them and Ash. Oh, you haven't met him yet right?" Duplica babbled, "Well you probably'll meet him eventually if you hang around with us."

"Oh yeah sure," he smiled, "I'll probably stick around until the Pokémon League anyway, but I'd like to call home when we get to Prof. Oak's."

"Seems like a plan to me," Amy said, grinning as they approached the giant windmill on the hill.

Prof. Oak would eventually say that he was very happy to see them, was glad to meet Tory and Duplica for the first time and that he'd really like to study Gabriel's mutation, but he had something to rant about first.

"I was worried sick! I knew you were right in the middle of the Seafoam and Cinnabar islands when there were those weird weather changes, and then those explosions from the volcano, why didn't you call?" the old man demanded from Gary. Amy stepped between them.

"Hey it's not Gary's fault! Excuse us if Team Rocket sort of had us kidnapped!"

"WHAT?"

"Amy, I'm not sure you're helping," Tory pointed out, and Amy laughed a little.

"Uh, guess not. Sorry Professor, I was joking?" she said with a nervous grin, which somehow Oak accepted.

"So we wanted to say hi before going to see if Amy and Gary can get their final badges," Duplica explained.

"Oh really? I believe Ash said that's where he was going when he passed through here yesterday, he should be arriving there by tomorrow afternoon on foot," Prof Oak said and Gary's eyes widened.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN ASH WAS HERE YESTERDAY?"

"Calm down Gary," Prof. Oak groaned, rubbing his forehead as if he knew this would happen. "Yes he was; he already had his Volcano badge; he said he got it the previous day..."

"Wait, that bastard Blaine was taking on challengers while we were kidnapped by Team Rocket?" Amy raged and then piped up with "Kidding!" when Prof Oak looked suspicious.

"That's IT! We are catching up NOW! Come on Amy, call out Selene, we can get there tonight and-"

"Come on Gary! They won't get there till tomorrow! Just let us stay the night here alright?" Duplica moaned loudly to a chorus of agreement from Amy and Tory.

"Fine, let the stupid loser get ahead why don't you…" Gary muttered.

"Right, that's reasonable. Now Amy, I believe your father would be able to accept a visit from you rationally, Delia has been talking to him every day and we've had him go in for some long overdue therapy. He's doing much better then when you last saw him, and he's even agreed to end the contract that made you have to travel with Gary, so if you want to split up you can," Prof. Oak explained.

"But I don't want to," Amy said smiling and looked over at her boyfriend. Gary seemed to have a tiny shade of red in his cheeks and looked pleased with himself.

Before trying a visit with Amy's dad, they decided to visit with the Pokémon they'd sent to Prof. Oak. As it turned out, Gary's Magikarp had somehow evolved into a Gyrados. Gar quickly traded his unused Sandshrew in for the powerful water type.

Then they went to the house of Amy's father.

Strangely, the visit was extremely uneventful- almost normal. It was as if her father was trying to ignore the fact that he had been trying to force his daughter not to go on a Pokémon journey at all. He greeted Gary warmly, smiled for Duplica and Tory, and hugged his daughter. The only thing wrong was that he seemed very cold towards Gabriel and Ditto, to their disappointment. Amy really thought his anger at Pokémon was totally ungrounded; there was no way Ninetails had killed her mom. All the same, if she brought that up now it would sort of ruin the mood so she'd probably be best to let it go and keep her mouth shut. Even when her father sent Gabriel a death glare for trying to reach the bowl of fruit on the table and scratching the surface with his claws, Amy recalled the young pokemon into its ball rather than defend him.

That night Tory went to spend the night at Gary's house while Duplica slept over with Amy. Duplica totally went wild when she found Amy's diary and was in near tears when she started reading Amy's top ten list of hottest famous Pokémon trainers and researchers. This included Lance, Bill, and Eugene from the Hoenn league among others. Amy was thoroughly embarrassed by this.

The next day, Amy and Duplica met up with Tory and Gary, who seemed to have done some male bonding over video games and were now talking like best friends.

"I swear, when we come back after I get my final badge I'm gonna cream you at Super Poke-Brothers Brawl!" Gary said with a big grin.

"Keep dreaming, once I help you unlock Charizard you can't beat me, he's my best guy!"

"Hi guys! We're heading for Viridian now right?" Duplica giggled. Amy released Selene, who was at last rested and ready to travel. They climbed aboard, waved goodbye to Prof. Oak, and headed into the sky for Viridian. Only about fifteen minutes later they were there as Selene flew fast and it wasn't that far when you didn'. Unlike their previous road to Viridian, the sky was clear and sunny. They landed in front of the gym, just as Ash, Misty and Brock were approaching, coincidently.

"Amy? Is that you? When'd you get a Dragonair?" Ash asked, mouth hanging open as Amy hopped down.

"Amy! My dearest!" Brock cried running for Amy but Gary blocked him.

"Back off, she's got a boyfriend now!" he growled and Amy blushed brightly.

"Who? This guy?" a shocked Ash turned toward Tory.

Tory's eyes widened. "Huh? Me?"

"I should think not!" Duplica huffed, grabbing her surfer boy's arm.

"Who then?" Ash looked confused.

"I think it's Gary, Ash," Misty whispered.

"What? Gary?" Ash laughed at the absurdity. "You're not dating Gary, right?"

"Uh yeah, I guess I am," Amy said, shifting her feet uneasily. Ash looked devastated, but no one really acknowledged it.

"She's so beautiful!" Misty cried out as she ran over to pet Dragonair.

Brock took a look too. "She seems really healthy."

"Yep, her name's Selene," Amy said proudly.

"So you're Ash huh? Amy's talked about you. I'm Tory, Duplica's boyfriend, I'm from the Seafoam Islands," Tory said, flashing a grin and shaking Ash's hand.

"Oh, nice to meet you," Ash said, recovering slightly. "Yeah I'm Ash, this is Misty, Brock, and Pikachu!"

"Pika Pi!" Pikachu chirped from his shoulder.

Amy suddenly noticed a new acquisition in Misty's arms. "Misty, what Pokémon is that?" she asked, pointing to what looked like half an egg with pointed gloop coming out the top and black beady eyes. Some might call it cute, like Duplica who ran over to coo over it, but Amy frankly found it a bit creepy.

"Oh, this is Togepi!" Misty said, cuddling it to her chest.

"Toge!" the eggshell Pokémon cried maliciously.

"So Ashy boy, you're getting the Viridian City gym badge too huh? It was closed when we were here last," Gary said folding his arms and sneering at Ash. It would have been an innocent statement from someone else, but Gary made it seem condescending.

"Well so what if am?" Ash demanded and Amy sighed.

"Okay you guys should really break it up. No one's guarding the gym this time so I can only assume it's open. I suggest we go in?" Amy said, forcing herself to smile as much as possible under the circumstances. They opened the gym doors... only to find the guards inside them.

"Don't tell me the gym leader still isn't here!" Gary growled and the guard shook his head.

"No he's here, but only one challenger is allowed inside at a time," the guard explained.

"Oh, but we aren't challenging, only Ash, Gary and Amy are," Brock said pointing each of them out.

"Then only one of them is allowed in at a time, and you spectators are each allowed inside for only one match," said the other guard.

"That's not fair!" Misty said haughtily but Brock shook his head.

"Gym leaders can make their own rules," he said knowledgably, "We can still watch Ash."

"Oh, well, yeah," Misty muttered.

"Mmm... kay, I'll watch Amy and you watch Gary, okay, Tory?" Duplica suggested, standing on tiptoe and giving Tory a quick kiss. He blushed and nodded.

"Sure thing," he said, sounding dazed.

Gary shrugged. "I'm heading in first though!"

"Be my guest," Amy said gesturing him in. Gary smirked and headed through the doors with Tory, followed by the guards. Amy went to recall Selene. Suddenly Misty shrieked.

"TOGEPI'S GONE!" was the cry and so she, Ash and Brock ran off to find the egg Pokémon while Duplica and Amy dawdled in front of the gym. Suddenly they heard screaming inside... and it sounded like the guys. Suddenly it was silenced.

"Gary? Are you okay?" Amy asked loudly and banged on the doors. They swung opened. She looked at Duplica nervously. It was dark in there.

"W-what do you think happened to them?" Duplica whispered.

"I don't know, but I'm going to find out." Amy gulped and marched into the gym, followed by Duplica, who looked rather unsure that this was the best course of action. So did her Ditto, but her Ditto normally copied Duplica's expression. They walked carefully as their eyes adjusted the darkness, then Amy's foot hit something that said "OUCH."

"Gary? Is that you?" Amy asked, dropping to her knees beside the figure and lifting his shoulders from the ground. Off to the right she heard Duplica asking Tory if he was okay and Tory's muttered response acknowledging his conscious state.

"Yeah it's me... Amy?" Gary said weakly.

"What happened to you?" Amy asked brushing the hair from his face.

"Amy... the gym leader, it's Giovanni. He has a new Pokémon too, and I swear, it's pure evil."

"But, there's no such thing as an evil Pokémon," Amy said, confused.

"Well this one is. You can't beat it Amy, it's too powerful..."

"Well I'm going to try! Giovanni is NOT getting away with hurting you like this!"

"So I have another challenger then?" Giovanni's voice rang from across the room and the lights flipped on. In front of him was a strange Pokémon Amy had never seen the likes of. With all the machinery on its body it looked like a cyborg.

"Giovanni! How dare you do this to my Tory!" Duplica cried, jumping to her feet and looking at Giovanni in rage. Tory did look pretty beat up.

"He'll be fine," Giovanni said gruffly. "Now, the rules of this gym are thus: You can use all your Pokémon at once and if you can make my Pokémon give up the battle, you get a badge." Amy looked over at Gary and noticed his Pokémon were lying around him, looking totally wiped out.

"Erm..." Amy said looking a bit nervous.

He grinned. "Maybe you need more of a prize? How about this, if you can beat me, I'll give you and your boyfriend badges, how's that?"

"Fine, deal, let's do this," Amy said, taking her place across from Giovanni.

"No Amy, don't do it!" Gary cried from the floor and winced.

"Not listening! Go everyone!" Amy cried, throwing her Pokeballs onto the field. Selene, Isis, Harmony, Gabriel, William(Machop) and Avion appeared, ready to go. "Okay, Selene, Dragon Rage! Isis, Ice Beam! Harmony, Thunderbolt! Gabriel, Blizzard! William, Mega Punch! Avion, Drill Peck!"

Her Pokémon charged at the cyborg Pokémon, but merely bounced back from an invisible, circular barrier that seemed to be around it. Giovanni snapped his fingers and the odd Pokémon raised its hand, glowing in a blue light. The blue light then surrounded Amy's Pokémon as well, causing them all to rise into the air helplessly.

"Yes! With Mewtwo at my side no one can prevent me from ruling the world! Even without Sunraroes and Darentoes, Mewtwo's power is more than enough to lead my army!" Giovanni announced, grinning widely. Suddenly Amy's Pokémon fell to the ground, the blue light gone. Mewtwo turned to its trainer. A weird voice echoed through the room, or maybe in their minds? "You will rule the world? You said we would rule it together!"

Giovanni glared down at Mewtwo. "You were created by humans to obey humans. That is the purpose of a Pokémon."

Amy's mouth dropped open. "NO IT'S NOT!"

"B-but I thought it was," Duplica said hesitantly from behind Amy. "I mean they aren't as smart as people..." Ditto looked offended but Duplica didn't notice.

"Hey, my Pokémon are smart!" Gary snapped.

Amy's hands shook in fury. "NO! We're just trainers, we help the Pokémon get stronger and in return they help protect our bodies and our honour! It's a trade of services, not slavery!"

"Shut up girl, you don't understand what you're talking about," Giovanni growled.

"I understand way more than you do!" Amy shouted.

"Well yeah, it's not slavery but the fact is that trainers do end up with a lot more credit and fame than the Pokémon they train do," Tory pointed out.

"Well that's not fair," Amy said clenching her fists.

"This Pokémon is mine to own and control!" Giovanni shouted.

"ENOUGH OF THIS!" Mewtwo roared. "NO ONE CONTROLS ME!"

The Pokémon then blasted out of his armour, revealing a purple, vaguely cat like form. He glared at all the humans in the room before blasting off through the ceiling. Giovanni screamed for it to get back here, like that would ever work. Amy smiled and recalled her Pokémon.

"I believe you owe me two badges?"

Giovanni's mouth opened in anger. "What are you talking about? You didn't win!"

"But Mewtwo did give up the battle." Gary pointed out, recalling his own Pokémon "That's all she had to do to win."

"And I know you don't want the police to know this is where you've been hiding out." Amy smirked.

Giovanni growled something under his breath and then shouted, "FINE!" before throwing two Earth badges down to Amy. She in turn tossed one to Gary on the floor and both girls helped their boys out of the gym and down the street toward the Pokémon center.

While their Pokémon were healing, Amy suddenly realized that Ash had to fight the gym leader now too. Of course he had no idea that Giovanni was head of Team Rocket... or his father... but would that make him more or less safe in battling him? Did Giovanni know what Ash looked like? Suddenly there was a loud explosion. Some kids ran in saying the gym had exploded. A few minutes later Ash, Misty and Brock came into the Pokémon center looking a bit dirty but not seriously hurt.

"Uh, well, I got an Earth badge, but I had to fight Jesse and James to get it. It was really weird… apparently they'd been left in charge of the gym. I don't know what idiot would let them do something as important as run a gym but…" Ash showed them his badge, identical to Amy's and Gary's.

The whole group decided to spend the day in Viridian, having fun before going back to Pallet Town the next day. They all ate out at a fast food joint and went to see the latest Staryu Wars movie. That night, in the girl's bedroom at the Pokémon center with Duplica and Misty, Amy took out her mother's red badge case and opened it, looking happily at the 8 glittering gym badges. These were her passport into the Indigo League. She wondered if her mother would be proud of her.

The next day they all walked back to Pallet, Pikachu, Ditto, Gabriel and Togepi running around at their feet. The way back to Pallet was downhill and always took less time than the way up to Viridian. It still took a while. They would have taken Selene, but even a Dragonair would have trouble carrying seven people. Amy thought that Gary and Ash were behaving themselves quite well... though Ash wasn't really talking much and when he did speak to Amy he seemed unconvincing in his cheerful act. In any case, when they got back Prof. Oak seemed really happy about Amy, Gary and Ash all getting all eight badges. He happened to point out that the other 3 trainers that came out of Pallet Town all were total failures as trainers. Way to be nice Professor.

In any case, the Indigo League competition wasn't to start for another month, so they all decided to set up where they'd be sleeping. Misty and Duplica would be staying with Amy, Brock would stay with Ash and Tory would stay with Gary. When Duplica and Tory went to meet Ash's mom, Delia Ketchum seemed totally shocked for some reason. Ash didn't notice his mom's distress though, and was easily shooed out to the store for milk while Delia sat down in her living room with Amy and Duplica. (Misty and Brock had gone with Ash and Tory was at Gary's house).

"Mrs. Ketchum," Amy said a little awkwardly,"Um, we know who Ash's dad is. We think you should know too that... he's sort of in charge of Team Rocket."

Delia looked even more shocked. "H-he is? Well I suppose I always knew he had some problems with the temptation of world domination. So you must also know that Duplica is Ash's twin then?" Now it was Amy and Duplica's turn to be shocked out of their minds.

"He's my WHAT? B-but that would mean you're my mom, and then Giovanni is my... OH MY GOD!" Duplica shrieked and fell backwards.

"Oh, so you didn't know?" Delia looked embarrassed. "Please don't tell Ash, he shouldn't have to know all this."

"Trust me, I don't want Ash to know," Duplica said looking freaked out. "Why did you send me away to my grandparents... oh my god I've been staying with Giovanni's parents! But they called my dad... Geo... … … oh my god!"

Delia Ketchem frowned. "His parents knew I was pregnant and wanted to take the child since they thought I was too young to care for it properly. So when I had twins we sent them you and kept Ash, but I'd really rather have had both of you..."

This was a very awkward scene, but it ended quickly with Ash appearing. Since Delia had begged their silence about his father they tactfully changed the topic to the upcoming Pokemon league, a topic Ash easily got into without noticing any strange looks Duplica gave him. She was trying to figure out where the family resemblance was.

About two weeks later, Gary and Amy were sitting out in the field around Oak's windmill house. The wind was blowing softly through their hair and Gary's hand was lightly on Amy's. They were watching Ash's obscene amount of Tauros stampede around their enclosure.

"So are you ready yet, Amy?" Gary asked suddenly, looking at her. Amy looked at him wide eyed in confusion.

"Ready for what? The Pokémon league? I guess so, I mean, Avion's been having trouble learning Mirror Move but his evolution into Fearow is pretty impressive."

"I guess, yeah." Gar shrugged. "But I meant more… um…" he leant toward Amy and brushed his lips against hers. She kissed back uncertainly, but caught on as his tongue darted in insistently. Amy pushed herself back from him.

"Oh, that..." Amy said blushing violently. "Uh..."

"I- erm- I don't mean to push or anything. Nevermind," Gary muttered. Amy's blush deepened and she looked extremely freaked out.

"I- I uh..." Amy thought about it, looking down. She did like Gary, a lot. But that seemed like a bit of a big step for a kids show.

"Well, I guess we really shouldn't think about it right now anyway. It's not like we could when we're here with everybody. But I thought after the Pokemon league when Duplica and Tory have left to do whatever they're going to do and Ash and his friends have gone, we'd be alone together again."

"And this time we won't hate each other," Amy said softly, for the first time realising how serious this was.

Then Ash's voice suddenly rang over the hill, loudly screaming. "AMY! AMY YOU'LL NEVER BELEIVE THIS!"

"WHAT IS IT?" Amy yelled back.

"Hey Ash, buzz off!" Gary growled but Ash didn't seem to notice.

"Your dad just proposed to my mom!" he said wide eyed at Amy, whose jaw dropped.

"WHAT?"

"And she said yes!"

"WHAT?"

"So you're going to be my sister!"

Amy gave that a second to sink in and then her face lit up. "AWESOME!" she jumped up and gave Ash a huge hug.

Gary's eyebrow rose. That would mean if he married Amy, Ash would be his brother-in-law. That would be… weird.

"Oh, is that why my dad's so calm? I was sure he'd still be furious… or refuse to speak to me. Something," Amy frowned.

"I guess so," Ash said with a shrug. "Though I thought it would be more from Oak convincing him that his pokemon prejudice shouldn't… um… estrange him from his own daughter? I think that's the word he used. Anyway, yeah, they're getting married!"

"Well… that's great then! I'd better go congratulate him then!" Amy said, hurrying off down the hill, "See you guys later!"

"Yeah," Gary replied to Amy and sighed, looking over at Ash. "So what do you think about being my brother-in-law?"

"Your- your- WHAT?" Ash yelped.

"Brother-in-law. If I marry Amy-"

"Marry Amy… That's kinda thinking a little far ahead don't you think," Ash said in a low, deadpan voice, his eyes narrowed.

"Well, why shouldn't she marry me? Looking at the other guys around here, I wouldn't say I have much competition," Gary snorted.

Ash glared. "You seriously think you're the best looking guy who's interested in Amy?"

Gary gave a smug look. "Obviously."

"You mean you haven't seen any other guy look at Amy your whole journey so far?"

"N- well…" Gary frowned, remembering Sameri… and Brock… and Bill… and what about that Rocket- Bonk was it? Did he like her too? Maybe… "Okay maybe I've seen other guys but Amy didn't… well I think she might've liked Bill but she said he was too old for her. No, I'm definitely the best guy for her. Anyway, you'd better do well in the Pokemon League. I don't want to be related to a total loser. Smell ya later!" Gary sneered, heading down the hill to find Amy again.

_((Joyful Note: I know we haven't had a big father confrontation. Yet. I do have a sequel after the last part of this coming. I always thought it seemed a bit darker than this and we'll go into all the parental issues... ANYWAY, I'm mostly writing this for those who've stuck by it at this point. I've had critics but whatever, some people like it so I won't leave them hanging. One more part to go!))_


	22. Indigo Hues, A Story's End

**Not All Arrogance (A Gary Oak Love Story) Part 22~ Indigo Hues, A Story's End**

_((Joyful Note: Yes! I have FINALLY finished editing Not All Arrogance! Now, I've been giving this a lot of thought, and I've decided to post the sequel under this same story. So basically, just stay subscribed to this story, and I'll start posting the sequel here. I just figure it'll be easier this way. It's not like I want people to start at the sequel anyway, so I may as well go this route. Mind you, I haven't finished writing the sequel, and I have not only that but TWO OTHER SEQUELS mapped out to write afterwards. Seriously, I've charted all the chapter titles and everything- at the moment, I'm looking at 4 story arcs that add up to 101 chapters all totalled. I don't know if I'll make it, but I'll give it the old college try I think. So enjoy this part, and keep in mind that originally, it was just an epilogue to my first story, so it isn't as long as previous parts have been.))_

Amy stood on the platform waving to the crowd; she felt a warm glow in her chest. Gary had been knocked out in the top 32, Ash in the top 16, but she, Amy, had somehow managed to battle her way up to the quarter finals. Although she lost her battle and hopes of _winning_ the league were moot, she could still battle the loser from the other match up to perhaps get third place. Even if she lost here, she'd still be counted as #4 in the region which was incredible anyway. This was a six on six Pokémon battle, and she would give it everything she had. She knew all her friends and family were in the stands. It was time to fight. It was dark, and the stadium lights were on, but the biggest glow came from the Pokémon league flame. Amy gulped, sweating. She didn't feel ready for this. Even if #4 would be an amazing accomplishment for such a young trainer, she still felt a lot of pressure to at least bring back a bronze trophy. Fourth place, she knew, got nothing but an honourable mention.

Amy shook as she released her first Pokémon onto the field. Avion took to the air and cried out as the opposing trainer released their Skarmory, obviously reminding Amy of her first capture by Team Rocket, just prior to meeting Duplica. Actually… now that she thought about it, if Team Rocket hadn't captured them, they might never have really met her. After all, then they would've had no reason to talk to Lance and although Amy would've been interested in seeing Lance in that house in Vermillion, she probably wouldn't have really befriended Duplica as she had when she let her visit Lance with them.

Well, whatever memories rose to Amy's mind at the time, it was to be a battle of flight. "Drill Peck!" Amy cried. Avion dived towards Skarmory, but the silver bird dodged the attack.

"Steel Wing!" the trainer called. The attack flew at Avion. Amy knew better then to try Mirror Move, Avion never seemed to make it work correctly.

"Dodge!" Amy called, but Skarmory managed to slam into Avion's wing, the same one that had been broken when she found him on the first day of her pokemon journey. The wing crumpled, and Avion fell to the ground. It seemed as though the wing was broken again.

Avion's attacks were all air based, he couldn't fight with a broken wing. The judge seemed aware of this and declared the Pokémon too injured to battle, so Amy was forced to recall him. There was hissing an booing from the crowd. Injuring Pokémon like that was usually deemed dirty play, though it wasn't illegal, and Amy doubted the opposing trainer had done this on purpose.

Amy then sent her next Pokémon to fight. Her Numel, Flash, whom she had captured in the Safari Zone and recently switched her Machop for, was brought out. She'd switched the two because after the first League round the poor guy had pulled a calve muscle. As it seemed a day for fond memories, her mind flashed to the Safari Zone where she had gone with Gary and Duplica, catching Pokémon left and right, Flash being one of these. It was also, of course, where she and Gary had experienced their first kiss.

"Flamethrower!" Amy's voice rang out. Type advantage won this battle, as Fire melted Steel. Skarmory fell. The opposite trainer's next fighter was a Rhyhorn, making Amy's mind jump to Gary's Rhydon, and how it had evolved during battle with Blaine. She felt a bit sick recalling that he had left this world so soon after that match. Although she felt a bit less bad after recalling that he had given Ash a gym battle while she, Gary, Duplica and Tory had been in danger from Team Rocket.

The battle raged, the Overheat used by Flash seemed to weaken Rhyhorn, but it also wore out the fire Pokemon and a strong Stomp brought the slow moving Numel down. Amy returned her Pokémon and sent out her mutant Cubone, Gabriel, who had been standing at her side. The Pokémon wasn't really just an orphaned baby anymore, and was eager to fight. The Rhyhorn was already hurt so a Blizzard followed by a quick tackle finished it off. Amy hoped she wasn't angering his Marowak mother in the spirit world by having him fight like this, but then again... pokemon usually liked these sort of battles, didn't they? As these thoughts plagued her (and caused Gabriel to wonder why his trainer was sort of standing around and not giving orders like she should've been) she suddenly recalled that the same day Gabriel was mutated, she learned that Ash's father was the Kanto region's biggest criminal, and later they had learned that he wasn't just Ash's father, but Duplica's as well.

The trainer next sent out a Ditto. This obviously reinforced Amy's thoughts of Duplica, and she smiled, remembering Duplica when she first met her, dressed as Officer Jenny and trying to sneak into a house in Vermillion to drool over Lance. The Ditto used by the other trainer now tried to transform into Gabriel, but only managed to flip between Sneasel and Cubone. Obviously it was a hard request to fulfil, copying the DNA of a mutant. Nevertheless, it was a formidable opponent in either form. It was intense fight when both Pokémon unleashed Blizzard, which when cleared revealed both Pokémon to have been encased in blocks of ice. With three Pokémon left on either side, it seemed the real fight was just beginning.

"Harmony!" Amy called, and her blue eyed Wigglytuff appeared on the field from her ball. Amy smiled a little weakly as her Pokémon waved with both paws to the crowd. She remembered when it had been just a little Jigglypuff and had saved them all from Butch and Cassidy in the caves of Mt. Moon, and how she had gone through her bag and found the Moonstone while she and Gary had been having their first actual date...

The other trainer sent out Raichu. Amy nearly laughed, this was Ash all over. No other Pokémon would have her mind so easily jump to him, except for Pikachu itself. She had worried about what Duplica had said before, about him liking her, well now they were going to be siblings, so that shouldn't be a problem. Her dad would probably even let her travel with him now, if she wanted to. She doubted Gary would want to though.

Raichu vs. Harmony commenced. Harmony used Sing, but Raichu covered its ears. Double Slap hit Quick Attack, sending both backwards. Then Raichu used Thunder and Amy knew she had won. Harmony absorbed the blast and puffed up. The crowd roared as she sent a huge Thunderbolt at Raichu, knocking it unconscious. Amy was winning now, but she couldn't rest yet. The trainer sent out Gyrados, who even on land was a major opponent. This made Amy's mind jump to the Gyrados that attacked her group and sent them to the island of the giant Pokémon. She caught Conchola there, and had pretty much lost everybody. Drew and MaKayla had saved them though. She wondered how they were doing in Lavender Town, and wondered if they were watching her on TV now. With Violet, her first rival for Gary. She wasn't sure how she felt about that though.

Harmony had used up her energy blasting Raichu, and the trainer was careful to not use any energy attacks on Harmony. He instead had Gyrados use Tackle and Tail whip on the pink, chubby rabbit and the Wigglytuff fell. Amy returned her. Against the Gyrados, Amy felt she could use no other. Selene took the field. Amy's eyes glittered at the site of this Pokémon. First it saved her life, it had carried her along the last steps of her journey, and it had helped her save Kanto from an icy fate from Articuno. She trusted Selene with all her heart.

Battle commenced. Selene dodged and twisted in the air, but Gyrados shocked all by its ability to slide across the land (which it had turned to mud with water gun moments earlier). In the end, Hyper Beams from both sides brought both titanic Pokémon down.

It all came down to the final match, whatever Pokémon they each had left. Amy closed her eyes, holding her final Pokeball tightly. She threw it only the field. "ISIS! LET'S WIN THIS!" Amy called as her Glaceon appeared. No Pokémon had more meaning to her this one, surely. This was the Pokémon she'd started her journey with. It had evolved at the side of Gary's own Eevee and had helped her so much in her journey. She saw nothing more fitting than to have this Pokémon finish her competition with a victory. Isis looked ready. Yes, surely no Pokémon could have more meaning then this.

Until the other trainer released his last Pokémon, this is what Amy thought. But as the white light of the Pokeball faded, her stomach gave a frightening lurch. She stood hesitantly, with small tears in her eyes as she faced the Ninetails before her.

She had been wrong, this Pokémon definitely held more meaning. This was the Pokémon whose kin she knew had once been her mother's. Its kin had been with her mother when she had died. This Pokémon's kin had been accused of her mother's murder by her father and had made him try to refuse her Pokémon journey, and had made her travel with Gary in the first place. It was this Pokémon's kin that she connected with her mother. So it seemed that it was time for all the happy events in her life were to go against her fears and sadness. It was time for the final battle.

"Isis! Ice Beam!" Amy ordered. Isis let loose a freezing blast at the fire Pokémon.

"Fire Blast!" came the reply blast. They met in mid air to a huge cloud of steam that covered the field completely. The trainer called out Dig, so when the steam cleared the only sign of Ninetails was a hole.

"Isis, be careful!" Amy warned but Ninetails still came up below her Glaceon. Isis took heavy damage before falling.

"Isis! Are you okay to keep going?" Amy asked and her Pokémon nodded, getting to her feet, "Then use Swift!"

The homing attack hit and caused some decent damage on Ninetails, causing it to stagger back. The battle lasted for quite some time, exchanging blow after blow, dodge after dodge. Finally, another cloud of steam met in mid air but this time with an explosion. When the steam cleared, both Pokémon were left breathing hard, near the end. It seemed to be a standoff; whoever stood longest would be the champion. An eternity seemed to pass, then, Isis fell. The opposing trainer had won. Amy seemed devastated at first, but then as she went to Isis and lifted her into her arms, she smiled. Maybe she didn't want to beat Ninetails after all. It hardly mattered. She was still #4 in the league. Even without a trophy, it was a damn great accomplishment.

Later, there was the major party in Pallet Town to honour Ash, Gary and Amy for getting so far. Amy was pulled to one side behind the bushes in Mrs. Ketchem's yard and were about to kiss when her father suddenly appeared next to them, holding Mrs. Ketchem's hand. Needless to say, it was a very awkward encounter, which ended with all four returning to the party without any kisses between them.

After the party, Duplica and Tory said goodbye. Apparently, Duplica was going to go back to Johto and Tory had to go home to Seafoam. They promised to write and call each other every chance they got, but the fact was that Tory's sister needed help with their progressively more senile grandfather and Duplica was only supposed to have been gone for a week. Granted her grandparents were used to her vanishing much longer than she was supposed to, but at this point she had a lot of questions to ask them about her birth parents.

It was a tearful parting true. Amy hugged Duplica fiercely and told her that she was officially her best girl friend and they would definitely have slumber parties in the future. They'd been through a lot together, and they saw them off to the edge of Pallet Town. Duplica and Tory would both be taking ships from the same port, so they departed together.

A week later, as Amy and Gary were trying to figure out where they were going to go next, Prof. Oak called and asked them to come over to his house. Ash, Misty and Brock had left three days earlier on an errand for Oak in the Orange Islands. This, too, had been a sad goodbye, as apparently he was to be gone for a while. Amy had given him her Conchola to bring back to its habitat, since she had promised the shell pokemon that she'd see that it was returned to its friends. Ash had agreed without a second thought.  
When Amy and Gary ended up in Prof. Oak's living room, Oak looked at them both while smiling a little uncomfortably.

"Um, what's up? Amy asked, confused.

"Gary, your mother wants you to visit her parents in the Orre region. Apparently, they sent an important email. They live in Agate Village as you know. While you're there, and this is why I want Amy to go too, I want you to investigate something."

"Investigate something?" Gary asked curiously.

Prof. Oak took a deep breath, "Apparently, there has been a rash of strange Pokémon sighted across the Orre region. People are calling them Shadow Pokémon, and they seem to be... evil."

"I thought there weren't any evil Pokemon?" Gary frowned.

"That's what I thought too, but with so many reports I'm beginning to wonder. That's why I want you both to leave immediately, and I ask you not to tell anyone where you're going. If you're going investigate this, you don't want people to know you're there. I'll tell your parents you went to the Orange Islands like Ash as a vacation or something."

"Wait, you, you can't be serious," Amy said, holding up her hands, "We're only fifteen, well, I'm sixteen as of six days ago and thank you all again for the cake and presents, love the Jigglypuff poster Gary, but I have to tell you that we're a bit young to be investigating dangerous Pokémon!"

"Exactly, who would suspect you?" Prof. Oak said happily.

"You're right Gramps, we're on this!" Gary said, grinning. Amy looked at him with wide eyes.

"You've gotta be kidding me," she said in disbelief.

"Come on, we're just seeing if the pokemon exist. It's not like we have to fight some evil organization again."

Amy couldn't help but feel as if Gary just completely jinxed the situation.

"Have fun! I already got all your things packed!" Prof. Oak said handing them their bags. He gave them two plane tickets to Orre, and hustled them out the door.

"Why is your grandpa trying to kill us, Gary?" Amy asked nervously as they began to leave the town.

"I don't know, but if you're a bit nervous... we should hold hands!" Gary said with a smirk and grabbed her hand as he ran up the road. Amy ran with him in defeat, knowing in her heart that everything would probably be fine, but unable to shake the feeling of foreboding regarding the adventure to come.

_((Joyful Note: Yep, much shorter than usual. SO! Just stay tuned to this story, the sequel chapters will just be posted under this. I am seriously hoping that the sequel is better than these chapters, but we'll just have to see I guess!))_


	23. Season 2, The Desert Region of Orre

**Hidden In Shadows (Sequel to Not All Arrogance): Part 1~ The Desert Region of Orre**

_((Joyful Note: Woo! Back again and editing things. I am just that awesome. Yes, the sequel has commenced and I can only hope that it lives as something better than the first. Though, judging by the currents laws of sequel quality... well, whatever! We shall try! Enjoy!))_

The only city in Kanto with an airport was Saffron. Neither Gary nor Amy ever flew commercially before so this was going to be a totally new experience for both of them, not that Amy could find much excitement in the novelty of the situation. Knowing full well that she was being sent by her boyfriend's possibly senile grandfather into a region where dangerous Pokemon were known to be in order to investigate said evil Pokemon, Amy couldn't help but keep her thoughts riveted to this fact regardless of how fast her Dragonair Selene flew Gary and herself to the city in the center of the region.

After a brief stop at the Pokemon center, the two trainers made their way toward the airport. It was a relatively small structure at the edge of the city when compared to the skyscrapers in the middle, and boasted a fleet of twelve eight-seat passenger planes, each with a flying pokemon native to the region painted on the tail. This was enough to manage the amount of people who wished to travel to other regions in this way. The only people who regularly made a point of leaving their home region were usually Pokemon trainers, and they usually preferred to stick to land and sea routes for those journeys so as to get in as much training as possible while traveling. Gary and Amy however didn't really have time for the scenic route today.

After passing through airport security, Gary and Amy took up seats in the small Pigeot painted aircraft with six other people including the pilot and co pilot. Gary and Amy was in the back of the plane. In front of them seemed to be a family of four, with a mother, father and two girls who looked about thirteen and ten years old and seemed shy. Amy took a quick look out the small window and suddenly felt a wave of nausea at the thought of flying in this tiny tin can of a plane. She looked at Gary in hopes of being comforted.

"Gary, remind me why we agreed to this? Couldn't we have just ridden Selene there?" Amy asked quietly.

Gary let out a short laugh. "What, you don't know? Orre's covered in desert. A Dragonair would dry out and sunburn if it tried to cross Orre by air."

"Um, I guess," Amy muttered, slouching downward. Gary reached across the gap between their seats and grabbed Amy's hand. Amy's eyebrow rose as she looked from their hands to her boyfriend.

"Look, Aims, It'll be fine. You're worrying too much. Gramps wouldn't have given us these tickets if it wasn't safe. But hey, if you're scared, I'm here for you, alright?"

Then the pilot announced take off. As we barrelled off down the runway, Gary kept talking.

"I mean, why would there be a problem? I mean I guess there's probably I small overweight balance on my side of the plane but I'm sure they make up for that with how the baggage is stored and I guess the wings don't look entirely steady but-"

"Gary."

"Uh, yeah?"

"You're kinda killing my hand with your squeezing."

"Oh, um..." Gary quickly released Amy's reddened hand from his grip and flushed brightly, but his hands moved to his arm rests which he now clutched as the plane began to creep into the sky. Amy groaned, hoping that her stomach would settle down before her first plane ride was over.

It didn't seem like that would be for a while, as she had to use her sick bag in the first ten minutes. She might not have any fear while riding Selene, but she somehow seemed more reliable than metal.

Despite her mind and stomach's misgivings, Amy did take time to looked out the plane window when passing over Orre about two hours later. Gary had been researching Orre through brochures at the airport and informed her, green as he did so (and not looking outside), that Orre was only mostly a desert region, having some forested areas near the coat, and apparently it was one of the few places in the world where there were no wild Pokémon anywhere. All Pokémon in the region were owned by trainers. It was easy to see why when Amy thought about it; the ground looked like a wasteland for miles, except for a few isolated towns. There were only two towns in the desert, Pyrite and Phenac according to Gary, and then Agate town was located in the west, in the forested area. Gary's maternal grandparents lived there. Further west was Gateon port, where the Orre Region airport and Seaport were both located. Luckily the whole region wasn't that large, so bus routes could connect all the towns and a person could go from one end of this bus route to the other in about eight hours. There were rumours, according to Gary again, of an underground city but they hadn't been confirmed.

Once over Orre, it wasn't long before they began to descend. In that time Amy determined that if they were going to travel around investigating shadow Pokémon, they would require some mode of transportation more easily accessed than a bus on a schedule. They couldn't rely on Selene in a dry climate like this. What transportation they could use though was beyond her for the moment.

The plane landed without a hitch, but Gary and Amy were still stumbling when they hit the pavement with their shoes. It took all Amy's willpower not to sink to her knees and kiss the ground in gratitude for its continued support in these troubled times. Thinking that Gabriel would enjoy a bit of fresh air, Amy released him from his ball. The little mutant Pokemon looked thrilled by this and hugged Amy's leg. Amy was about to tug away quick before she was cut, only to discover that her Cubone was actually holding the sharp parts at an angle so that they didn't cut his trainer.

"Wow. Looks like he's learning," Gary said, sounding a bit impressed though still suffering from nausea. Amy nodded, but the action made her feel light headed. Gary noticed this. "Pokemon center?"

"Yeah, we have a lot of jet lag to sleep off," Amy sighed, and the two trainers headed for the round roofed building with the giant red P... Gabriel still holding tight to Amy's leg the whole trip. It was dark out, and the stars were shining brightly.

Inside, the two had the biggest shock of their lives. Standing behind the front desk was NOT Nurse Joy. Instead, they were faced with a woman with long, beige coloured hair. She still seemed nice, but after being used to seeing Joys wherever they went it was still a jarring experience.

"Hello, I'm Nurse Hope. What can I do for you today?" the woman asked.

"Erm... well, me and my girlfriend need a room for the night," Gary said after he'd managed to get past the surprising lack of red pigtail...loop... things.

"Alright then, I'll set you up with two single beds. Remember, no shenanigans are allowed!" the nurse said with a small giggle. Amy blushed violently and looked away, causing Gabriel to look up[ at her in curiosity. Gary didn't seem entirely comfortable either and coughed as he took the card key. The two trainers headed off down the hallway to find their room. It had been one long day and they were ready to drop by the time they got inside and sank onto their twin mattresses. As sleep claimed her though, Amy was conscious of some strange, vague feeling of uneasiness about the day ahead.

The next morning, Gary and Amy headed out of the Pokemon Center and decided to get some breakfast before beginning to figure out how to get to Agate Town. They got some food at a nearby beach vendor and they broke out the Pokémon food as well. The two trainers their Pokémon dug in with earnest. Amy watched fondly as Isis and Socrates shared a dish together. Gabriel, who had long since abandoned attempts at picking up food with his claws, was bent over his bowl and scarfing his food so quickly it was a wonder he didn't choke on it. She noted that Harmony was looking at Gabriel with severe distaste and laughed. Gary raised an eyebrow.

Suddenly, a couple of men seemed to appear from nowhere and approached them. They both wore bandannas and sunglasses.

"Hey, you're Pokémon trainers right?" one said grinning, "My name's Folly, and this is my associate, Trudly."

"Are you interested a double battle?" Trudly asked, grinning as well.

Gary and Amy looked at each other. "Are you interested in a double battle?" Amy asked Gary.

"What, right now?" Gary asked, still half a crepe in front of him.

"Aw come on, just a quick one. You two against us two, one Pokémon per trainer, first side to lose a Pokémon loses," Folly said looking insistent. Amy sighed.

"Well, I guess I'm okay with it."

Gary looked a little surprised, and then smirked. "Guess I'll go too!"

"Excellent," both bandanna men said together. The two trainer teams stood apart from each other. Gary and Amy, knowing which two of their Pokemon were best to use in a double battle, ordered their Eevee evolutions onto the field. Both Umbreon and Glaceon stood with fur bristling, ready to fight.

"Alright, go Whismer!" called Folly. The little rabbit Pokémon appeared on the field, looking distinctly non-threatening. Neither had seen such a Pokemon before, but nor could they imagine it would cause much trouble.

"Go Makuhita!" called Trudly. The ball burst open, and Amy's eyes flew wide. The Pokémon released was a short, rotund crewature with a bright yellow colour, but it was surrounded by a black cloudy substance of some sort. A black aura. Amy gave Gary a sideways glance to get his opinion, but he was busy checking his Pokedex about the Pokémon he was facing, without a trace of concern that there was something seriously wrong with one of them. For the moment at least, Amy would try to ignore it and question later. After all, perhaps this aura was normal for Makuhita? She'd never heard of that Pokemon before either, so it was entirely possible.

"Alright, let's get this started! Amy, get Isis to attack Whismer, it's a normal type, so Dark moves won't really work that well," Gary explained. Amy nodded.

"Okay, Isis! Use Swift on Whismer!"

"Makuhita, block him!" Trudly ordered and Makuhita jumped in the way of the stream of stars, getting hit by them but seemed to collect barely any damage at all."Now use Shadow Rush!"

"Shadow Rush?" Amy questioned and Gary looked at her with a similar expression of confusion.

"I've never heard of that either," he confessed. Makuhita's black aura intensified for a moment and he charged toward Socrates, knocking him back hard. The Pokémon struggled to his feet. Whatever Shadow Rush was, it was powerful.

"Isis! Use Blizzard!" Amy called. Her blue Pokémon let loose the blast, but with a call of 'dodge' from their trainers, both opposing Pokémon evaded the attack.

"Use Shadow Rush again!" Trudly yelled, but when he did the Pokémon's black aura suddenly took a red tone and Makuhita let loose a growl, running straight at Amy with a blind rage. Amy stumbled back in shock. Pokémon didn't attack trainers without serious provocation!

"_Amy, watch out_!" Gary screamed, running in front of Amy and taking the attack. He was knocked into Amy, who fell back onto the ground. She pushed him off before she asked if he was okay.

"I-I think so, what's wrong with that Pokémon?" Gary groaned as they stood up, Gary clutching his side. Both their Pokémon were looking at their trainers in concern.

"Damn, it went into Hyper Mode again," Trudly growled.

"Well call it then, we can always fix the gauge later, I wish head office would fix that stupid bug already," Folly grumbled back. Amy and Gary were obviously bemused by the entire predicament... and more than a little sore. So as Trudly called out his Pokémon's name, which Amy noticed turned the aura back to black, Amy and Gary decided to finish this battle.

"Socrates, use Screech!" Gary called and Umbreon let loose his super powerful lungs. Everyone had to clamp their hands over their ears but Amy managed to get Isis to hear her shout for Blizzard somehow anyway. Isis turned her powerful icy breath towards the opponents and sent both for a loop, knocking Whismer out at least. Makuhita seemed like he could still go on, but the rules set by their opponents only stated that one Pokemon need be knocked out. Socrates stopped and was recalled, as was Isis. Folly and Trudly more than a little annoyed as they recalled their Pokémon, but Amy couldn't help but express her concern over the strange, shadowy Makuhita.

"What was up with your Makuhita? It had a black aura all around its body," Amy said, frowning.

"Oh, that's cause it's a Shadow poke- ouch!" Folly yelled as Trudly smacked him over the head.

"Shut UP!" he hissed.

"Black aura? What do you mean?" Gary asked, looking befuddled and still wincing from his bruised side Amy chewed the inside of her cheek and looked back at Trudly.

"It had something like a black cloud around him, and just before he attacked Gary it glowed red too," she explained. They all stared at her for a long moment. Then their opponents were all grins again.

"You know, you should probably get your boyfriend to a doctor to get that looked at, we're very sorry our Pokémon attacked you, and we'll accompany you there, alright?"

Although Nurse Hope was primarily a Pokemon doctor, she also knew enough about human bodies to diagnose Gary's injury and it turned out that Gary had a big bruise but nothing worse. Folly and Trudly had followed them to the Pokémon center where Amy and Gary left all their Pokémon with Nurse Hope to be checked over, since they were leaving for the bus station soon. The four were loitering around the front entrance (not that Amy or Gary really wanted the other two around anymore) when out of the blue Trudly grabbed Amy's arm.

"Hey wha-?" Amy tried to pull back but she was pushed into Folly by Trudly. Folly covered her mouth with his hand. She looked wildly about but no one was around to assist except for Gary.

"Let go of her!" Gary snapped, rushing forward to tackle Folly, but Trudly punched him in the side where Makuhita had hit him earlier. Gary let out a sharp cry in pain and fell over.

"Don't follow us, if you know what's good for yeah," Trudly growled before he grabbed Amy's legs, lifting her off the ground, and the two ran up the street. Gary tried to get up, winced in pain, and fell down to his knees again. A short ways away, Amy was pulled into an alley, tied up and tape was used to cover her mouth. They stuffed her into a bag and loaded her onto a truck, which the two began driving out of town. Needless to say, Amy's heart was beating its way out of her chest as she stared at the inside of the bag with increasing horror. It had suddenly clicked with her that she and Gary had been sent to Orre in order to discover evil Pokemon. Evil Pokemon named _Shadow_ Pokemon. She herself had thought Makuhita had possessed a shadowy aura.

Makuhita was a shadow Pokemon, she had been kidnapped for discovering this, and now she was totally screwed.

Back at the Pokémon Center, Gary managed to get to his feet and ran after the men, asking whoever he saw (which wasn't many people, seeing as it was close to midday and most people were inside eating lunch) if they'd seen two men carrying a girl. Someone mentioned they saw two men with bandanas tying a girl up, but didn't want to get involved. Gary growled in rage at the lack of motivation in the bystander and kept on with his search. He soon found a guy who said they stole his truck. Gary was about to head to the front of the town, when he heard a loud, male voice that was very familiar to him.

"Gary Oak! _Where's my daughter?_ That's the** last **time I trust that grandfather of yours, where is she? You're coming home _now_!" it was Amy's father. Gary turned around, wondering how he was going explain this.

"Um, Amy is..." he could tell the truth. But if he did that, he'd probably never be allowed to be with Amy again. Her dad was really overprotective; to think his daughter was kidnapped would probably send him over the edge. "Shopping," was the first explanation that comes to mind.

Her father relaxed slightly, but only slightly, "That kid... you two should never have come here, Prof. Oak is an idiot, how could he send you here?" he growled, "I called Ash to ask about you two, and he says you weren't with them. Then his friend, Misty I think was her name, smacked him and said Prof. Oak told them to say you were with them, so I wouldn't know you were in Orre! Orre!"

"Erm, what's wrong with Orre?" Gary asked. '_Besides it being riddled with shadow Pokémon_.' He added inside his head. Then it suddenly occurred to him they were supposed to be on the lookout for shadow Pokémon. And the two guys actually admitted to having a shadow Pokémon. Wow... just... just wow. This was probably the world's largest brain fart on the part of himself and Amy, and it worked out in the worst possible way.

Amy's father frowned and looked away when he finally answered. "This is where myself and Amy's mother lived, before we went to Kanto to escape this place."

"What do you mean? Why did you have to escape?" Gary asked, momentarily losing his urgency in this new piece of information.

"I, well, I suppose I have to tell someone, but don't tell Amy this, it'll hurt her too much. You might want to sit down," the grey haired man said pointing to a bench. Gary hesitated, and then sat. He couldn't act impatient, or else Amy's dad would know something was wrong. "Here in Orre, there are two criminal organizations. One is Team Snag'em, which is widely known, and another, Cipher, which is far less known, but far more dangerous. When I was much younger, I was in Team Snag'em. The goal of Team Snag'em was to steal Pokémon from trainers. They had a snag machine that turned regular Pokeballs into Snag Balls that captured trainer's Pokémon. I decided one day I didn't want to do that anymore, and destroyed all the snag machines but two, which I took myself in case I might need them. It turned out that I did.'

'I met Amy's mother, Rui. She had run from Cipher. She was a top scientist there, and helped create a way to block Pokémon's inner emotions and turn them into fighting machines. These Pokémon were called shadow Pokémon. Rui discovered she could see an aura around the Pokémon that others couldn't. Peons were sent to find others that could see the aura of shadow Pokémon. There weren't many, but there were some. They were rounded up and killed."

Gary's eyes flew wide and he started to panic. "Th-they were all killed?"

Amy's father nodded solemnly. "Yes, and it seemed be hereditary, so sometimes whole families were murdered. Rui was left alive because she was useful to the organization, and because the ability to see the Shadow Aura was useful to their side. But soon she began to hate the murder they performed, and escaped. She ran, and we found each other. We both wanted to leave the region now; Rui was listed to be eliminated for deserting. We immigrated to Kanto, where we married, and a year later we had Amy. Then a few years after that, Rui was killed by her Ninetails. Her Ninetails was a shadow Pokémon. In a world where Shadow Pokémon were possibly all around, and all who could see them were being killed, any Pokémon could be a killing machine. I didn't know how far Cipher had expanded. I didn't want Amy to leave our hometown. But she did, with you. I just want her out Orre; this is the most dangerous place to be."

Gary stared at him, his chest feeling hollow. Amy might be... no, he couldn't think like that. Though... he had to tell Amy's dad what happened now. "Amy was captured by a couple of guys with a shadow Pokémon. She could see the shadow Pokémon's aura."

_**"WHAT?" **_

Suddenly, a man's voice was heard to the right and both Gary and Amy's dad looked up. "Wes? Is that you? You bastard, I thought we ran you out of here seventeen years ago!" it was a guy in a biker helmet, with a group of others in similar attire.

"We have a grudge against you, ya bastard! Your coming back to the base to get beat right!" another growled and they started rushing at Amy's dad, Wes being his name, and Gary. They jumped up and ran. The two darted behind a building and Wes grabbed Gary's shoulder.

"If Amy is captured by Cipher, then you have to save her! Take these," He said, taking off his gloves and putting them on Gary as he looked at the man in bewilderment "These are the snag machines I stole from Snag'em. I used them when Rui was alive to 'rescue' shadow Pokémon because she begged me to. But you must remember that shadow Pokémon are lost to us. Get them away from Cipher if possible, since they are powerful enemies. SAVE AMY! Oh, and take these keys to my old motorbike, it's at the front of town, now go!" Wes gave Gary some keys and ran out to meet Snag'em. Gary saw them pull out a metal crowbar and hit him hard over the head. The man fell before the bikers grabbed him and ran off.

Gary went to find the motorbike and sidecar. It didn't take long to find, as it glittered brightly in the desert sun. It was pretty cool. But this certainly wasn't the time to drool over a cool motorbike. He asked a woman nearby if they'd seen a truck out there.

"Yes, not a half hour ago a truck came barrelling around out here! Nearly ran me over too. They were heading east."

"What towns are east from here?" Gary asked quickly.

"Only Pyrite and Phenac. The boys driving that truck looked pretty rough and tumble, so I'd guess they'd be heading to Pyrite. Why, are they friends of yours?"

"No, they kidnapped my girlfriend, and I'm going to rescue her!" Gary announced striking a courageous pose before digging a helmet out of the sidecar and revving up the engine. He was just lucky his dad had taught him the basics of handling one of these things when he was twelve, he hoped it wouldn't be too hard as he took off over the sandy road in the east direction the woman had pointed out.

_Don't worry Amy, I'm coming! _Gary thought fiercely as he rode, totally oblivious to the fact that he'd forgotten all his Pokémon and Amy's at the Gateon Pokémon center.

_((Joyful Note: I know this chapter isn't spectacular. It was worse on Quizilla, trust me. I'm pretty sure the subsequent chapters in this sequel are better, but for now you'll have to content yourselves with this. I apologise!))_


	24. Running Blind

**Hidden In Shadows Part 2~ Running Blind**

It was hours later that Gary finally dismounted Wes' motorcycle at the gates of Pyrite Town. Just a quick glance around the street told much about what sort of place it was. The buildings were dirty, cigarette butts littered the ground and the people on the streets all looked suspiciously like gang members. Tight-lipped, Gary steeled himself and walked towards the nearest person, who happened to be a boy with a bandanna near the entrance to the town, smoking a cigarette and tossing a Pokeball up and down in his hand.

"Excuse me," Gary said, trying to add his confident sneer to his voice. His voice still slightly shook. "Have you seen two men in a truck come by here?"

"Maybe I have," the kid said raising an eyebrow.

"Well then which way did they go?" Gary said, getting impatient.

"If you really want to know then battle me, and I'll tell you if you win."

"I don't have time for that!" Gary snapped.

"Then go ask someone else," the kid laughed.

"You bastard!" Gary snapped, "Fine!" he dove for his Pokeballs as the kid released a Furret. Gary's eyes widened and he turned out his pockets. No Pokeballs. He had left them all at the Pokémon centre.

"What's the matter? Release your Pokémon!" the kid growled.

Gary blanched. "I-I don't have my Pokémon with me," he whispered, horrified.

"What the hell? Stupid kid..." the cig-kid snorted. Suddenly the Furret let out a loud growl and charged at Gary, who let out a yell and dodged at the last second, throwing himself to the ground.

"What's wrong with that Pokémon?" Gary demanded as the boy fiercely called his Furret, who stopped, looking slightly puzzled. The boy recalled it and frowned.

"I won this thing from the Pyrite Stadium; it's been acting weird like that since I got it. I'm going to go back and complain," the kid grumbled.

"Hey! What do you kids think you're doing over here?" a deep voice roared. Gary jumped at the sound and turned to see a VERY muscular man with grey hair lumbering towards them, "Hey! Cail! You know all battles are only to happen in Duel Square!"

"Yeah yeah, sorry Duking. This kid doesn't have Pokémon anyway," the boy Cail said with a shrug.

"I do too! They're just... not here," Gary said sheepishly.

"Then where are they?" Duking asked gruffly.

"Back at Gateon Port, I was in a hurry, and I still am! Did you see a truck come by here?" Gary demanded.

"No, can't say I have, did you Cail?" Duking asked. The boy with the cigarette shuffled his feet and nodded, "Why do you ask anyway? What's your name, kid?"

"Gary Oak, and I need to know where it went because the people driving it..." he figured he'd need some sort of help so he might as well tell the truth, "They kidnapped Amy, my girlfriend."

Duking's eyes flew wide. "They did? Well we'll see about this! Come with me, you too Cail," Duking said, grabbing both boys' arms and dragged then down the road into what Gary assumed was the man's house, "We have a police force here but everyone knows I'm the real law. Now tell me exactly what happened." Gary nodded and began to tell his tale.

Elsewhere, under Pyrite Town, Amy was finally out of the bag she'd been stuffed in.

Amy sat on the floor with her knees drawn up to her chest and looked angrily at the grey, rocky walls of her cell. Even on the other side of the bars there was only a narrow hall facing a wall identical to those inside her prison. The light was dim and flickering.

Amy had felt herself grabbed, carried and dumped many times, heard lots of muffled voices, and was now inside this small cell alone for no reason she could determine. She had clearly been kidnapped, but to what end?

Finally, after about 15 minutes Amy stood, grabbed the bars and shouted, "HELLO! ANYBODY OUT THERE? WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?"

A low but audible male voice (it sounded like a guy from his late teens or early twenties, Amy guessed) came echoing from what Amy assumed with the cell to the left of her own. "So, you see the Shadow Auras too then?"

Amy froze, not actually expecting an answer to have come. She thought about the darkness she'd seen around Makuhita earlier and thought that that might be what the boy was referring to. "Um, yeah I think so. That shadowy mass around that one Pokemon..."

"Then you're here for termination," the voice said dully, "Just like me."

Amy's heart beat faster. "T-termination? As in-?"

"Yeah, we're gonna die. Not yet though, they're still running experiments. They didn't run many before they started killing off mass numbers of aura seers, and apparently I was their first subject in ages. They want to find out the cause for it now, rather than just kill all the people they find who can see the auras, since there seems to be more then they knew about and if people keep disappearing more people will start talking about it. They'd rather hide the auras from everyone. They'll probably use you too, for variety in subjects. After they know all they need to, we'll be disposed of."

"N-no way. That won't happen. Gary will... oh what am I saying? Sure Gary will try to find me but I can't rely on that. I'll just have to escape myself then," Amy said confidently.

Silence from the boy, then, "Who are you, and what makes you think you can escape from here? You don't even know where you are, or why you're here, or anything. I assume you don't even really know what shadow auras are, judging by your hesitation when I asked if you could see them."

"My name's Amy, Amy Tanner," Amy said frowning.

"Tanner huh? Where're you from?"

"Kanto, who are you and where are you from?"

"It doesn't matter."

"Hey! I just told you who I was, why can't you tell me? That's pretty rude you know," Amy huffed.

"Fine, my name's Jesse. I'm from Sinnoh. I came here to see my cousin Justy in Phenac City and I happened to see and comment on a shadow Pokémon in front of the wrong guy. I was taken here. That's my whole story."

Amy sighed, "I suppose you'll want my life story now then?"

"Not really," Jesse grunted. Amy's eyes narrowed, unsure if she should be insulted. They stayed silent for a time.

Back in Duking's house, Gary had finished his story.

"So Amy Tanner, daughter of Wes and Rui, incredible," Duking breathed.

"Erm, yeah, only Rui died years ago..."

"You know I'm an old man, even if I don't really look it. I knew Amy's parents. Great kids. Saved my Plusle from Cipher Goons who were blackmailing me. I'm sorry to hear about Rui, she was a sweet girl. I'll do whatever possible to help you find Amy."

Gary sighed and smiled. "Thanks, I wouldn't mind the help."

Suddenly, a small red rodent Pokémon zoomed into the zoomed and knocked Gary over, jumping all over him and chattering, "PLUSLE PLUSLE PLUSLE!"

That Pokémon was followed by a blue one, "MININ! MININ MININ!"

"Oh, looks like Plusle and Minin remember Rui and Wes too, they'll help," Duking said with a smile. Gary stared at the two bouncing on his chest and raised an eyebrow, unsure how much help they'd be. Cail was laughing his ass off until Duking clapped him on the shoulder and demanded he tell them where the truck went, and as punishment for battling outside of Duel Square, he was told that he was to be coming with them. This sobered Cail up rather fast.

"Oh, hey I remember you now!" Jesse exclaimed suddenly, "You came in second in the Kanto Pokémon League! I heard some guards mention your name."

Amy started at the exclamation, "Uh, yeah I did. That was a little while ago, how long have you been here?"

"Maybe 3 months, and it wasn't very long ago."

Amy was shocked. "And no one's looking for you?"

"First of all, how the hell should I know if people are looking for me? I only overheard what they said about you, they don't exactly issue me a newspaper every day," Jesse said and added a bitter laugh before a soft mutter that Amy barely caught, "Not that it would matter if they did."

Amy hesitated. "Well... do you think anyone's looking for you?"

"No."

The abruptness of the answer took Amy by surprise. "Why?"

"Because all my family and friends are-," he stopped suddenly and then finished, "Back in Sinnoh. They-uh, don't know I'm here."

"What about Justy?"

"He didn't know I was coming, they got me before I could reach him."

Amy looked at the wall behind which she knew Jesse was, and gave a determined look toward it. "We'll get out. Gary will probably find someone to help him with it. He has Pokémon. We'll- we'll be fine. Really."

Jesse let out another bitter laugh. "You haven't seen me; you don't know what's coming for you. When you do, you'll lose that attitude pretty fast."

Amy's eyes widened. "Why? What did they do to you?" At that moment, random salsa music filled the air.

"God it's Mirror B.," Amy heard Jesse groan.

"Darrrrrling!" Amy's head snapped forward to see some weirdo man in a yellow jumpsuit, huge sunglasses and sporting an enormous red and white afro. The music was coming from a tape recorder at his belt. "Come, come! Time for you to come along and tell us about yourself!" he said grinning and opening the cell door. He swept inside and yanked Amy up, quickly snapping handcuffs on her and forcing her out the door. She caught sight of the other cell as she was pushed down the hall. Inside was a boy with dark red hair, freckles, and black clothes. Amy felt a shriek rise in her throat when she saw his eyes. They were scarred deeply, in bloody red, the parts without the blood milky white. He was blind, and Amy had a feeling that he wasn't blind three months ago. At this though, her entire body went cold.


	25. Tests

**Hidden in Shadows Part 3~ Tests**

In Pyrite Town, Gary Oak was still trying to reach Amy and walking with a determined look on his face. Cail was still an unwilling ally, having Duking use force to get him up to Cipher's Pyrite Town headquarters. They didn't attract many stares though, it seems Duking walking around with a screaming boy over his shoulder was normal.

"Okay, the door is locked, how are we going to get inside?" Gary asked with a frown after pulling on the door handle.

"Well I think Rui and Wes broke in themselves, but they said the keys were hidden in the basement of the Pyrite Colosseum. You can only go down there if you win a competition though," Duking explained.

"Yeah, that's where they gave me this stupid Furret," Cail growled.

"Okay so I just beat them right? Oh wait, I don't have any Pokémon with me! Well whatever then, just show me the Pokémon center and I can get some from my PC," Gary said confidently.

"There's no Pokémon center in Pyrite Town stupid," Cail snapped from over Duking's shoulder.

"H-huh? But then how can I…" Gary seemed perplexed. Then he brightened. "I'll just go catch some wild Pokémon! At least that'll give me a chance to-"

"There are no wild Pokémon in Orre!" Cail snapped, "And besides, I thought you were in a hurry? Why are you planning to go through the Colosseum at all? Wouldn't it be faster to go back to Gateon Port, get your Pokémon to break into this place using them?"

"Shut up Cail!" Duking snapped, "This is how real men settle things, honourable battling! Not sneaking around like you're always doing! Maybe if you fought with more force than those stupid dance steps and sneak attacks you do you wouldn't be stuck over my shoulder right now!" he turned to Gary, "You can use Plusle and Minin, they'll listen to you!"

Cail scoffed. "Like they'll help at all. Look, Gary, you seem like an okay guy I guess. So if I let you have my Furret if you can get Duking to let me get the hell away from you guys."

Gary though about the offer. Cail wasn't really doing anything else for them. The Furret may have something wrong with it, but at least it seemed stronger then Plusle and Minin did. "Yeah, Duking, I could use the Furret and this kid isn't much help." Duking grunted and dropped Cail. He groaned and handed Gary the Pokeball with Furret before shaking his head.

"You're an idiot Gary, you know that right? This Amy girl, she really must be something to you," Cail said looking a cross between amused and impressed.

"Yeah, she is," Gary grinned. Then his face hardened as Cail left, lighting a cigarette on his way. "Alright Duking, let's go!"

"Ah, sorry Gary, I've got to help my daughter with her homework, but stop by if you beat the Colosseum!" Duking said smiling and heading back to his house. Plusle and Minin were now both on Gary's shoulders. He still held Furret's Pokeball in his hands. He wondered how in the hell he was supposed to save Amy like this.

Amy had been marched into a small room that reminded her of a doctor's office, but more metallic grey than white. She was made to sit on a steel table as Mirror B. leaned against a wall. Beside him were three men in lab coats and dark sunglasses. They appeared nearly identical.

"So, according to your Pokedex you are the 'famous' Amy Tanner," one of the scientists grinned "Fourth place in the Kanto Pokémon league, and daughter of the two most notorious trouble makers in the entire Orre region. It's good to be seeing you, I wish we'd had the pleasure of meeting earlier."

Amy frowned. "What do you mean troublemakers?"

"Ah so you don't know… well no sense worrying you over it," The second scientist said, nodding and making notes. Amy scowled.

"Are you kidding? You brought it up, so of course I'm going to worry over it now!" Amy snapped.

"How very like Rui…" the third scientist murmured. He stood slightly behind the others.

"You won't worry for long Miss Tanner," the first smiled, "You'll have worse problems on the way."

Amy snorted. "Well that's encouraging." In truth, her fear was clawing around at her stomach. However, she wasn't going to show weakness to these people. No matter what they did, they wouldn't break her down. No way.

"Mm hmm…" the second was still making notes. Amy frowned, biting her bottom lip a little. The second looked at her, then scribbled some more. She looked from him to the first.

"So what are you going to do with me now?" she asked, mentally cursing herself for the weakness in her question.

"Oh standard procedure. We'll give you a full physical examination, then we'll take some blood samples, all very safe I assure you," the first chuckled.

"Yeah, the real fun starts tomorrow after the boss comes to take a look," Mirror B. laughed. Amy's heart hammered but she kept her face mostly neutral. Only the corner of her mouth twitched downward.

So Amy submitted. What else could she do in this situation? She had no idea where she was but clearly there was high security. So far, she was being stripped and poked and prodded but no worse. It did seem all medical… except for Mirror B. but at least he wasn't touching. In Amy's mind, she decided her best option was to talk big and fearless but seem non-threatening beyond that. Then maybe they'd slip up somewhere, give her the piece of information she'd need to break free. Hopefully before tomorrow. She was starting to feel sick.

Gary was in the middle of a Pokémon battle. No, not at the Colosseum. That would be just too damn easy wouldn't it? Crossing duel square he was challenged to a battle and everyone knows that declining a battle in duel square could get you shot. Gary complied. Plusle and Minin fought a Rosalia and a Starly. Gary was relying heavily on his Pokedex for attacks and his opponent was mocking him for it. His cheeks were growing red with anger.

"Plusle use… Helping Hand!" Gary said, eyes darting to the Pokedex "Then Minin, use Spark on Starly!"

Minin's charged attack smoked the bird Pokémon and it fainted. Gary's opponent seemed unworried.

"Whatever, check out this Pokémon I won at the Colosseum, kid!" the trainer sent out a Misdeveus. Gary looked up the ghost type in his Pokedex. Registering it he knew to avoid physical attacks at least.

"Minin! Plusle! Use Spark!" he called. They aimed for Misdeveus but Rosalia was ordered to shield and absorbed a lot of the attack.

"Okay, now use Shadow Rush!" the trainer yelled. Misdeveus cackled and glowed black before slamming into Plusle with a driving force. With a cry the red rodent fell and its blue companion ran toward it crying out. Gary ran forward and collected Plusle form the ground. Then he sent out Furret.

After quickly looking up the ferret Pokémon's attacks, Gary turned to his recent addition. "Okay use… Quick Attack on Rosalia!" Gary said deciding that beating off the grass type would allow Minin to start working on Misdeveus. Furret did nothing.

"H-huh?" Gary said in shock. At its level, Furret should definitely know this attack. There is no way it couldn't. He had eight badges, all Pokémon should obey him even if received from another trainer… what was wrong?

"Can't even make your Pokémon listen to you, kid?" the trainer laughed, "Shadow Rush!"  
Misdeveus suddenly growled and ran at Gary. Gary yelled and jumped out of the way.

"WHY DO THESE WEIRD POKEMON KEEP ATTACKING ME?" Gary screamed in frustration as the trainer called Misdeveus' name in mild irritation. Then it hit Gary all at once. The Makuhita. It had used Shadow Rush too; the one Amy said looked weird, the Shadow Pokémon. And Furret must be one too; it also attacked him like that! So then… it must use the move Shadow Rush! "Furret, use Shadow Rush on Rosalia!" Gary called. Furret obeyed this time, glowing black and charging. Rosalia went down, to its trainer's shock, as if the move were super effective. But she remained confident.

"Okay so you have a Shadow Pokémon too, big deal. Misdeveus is more than a match, you don't even know how to work with one!" she laughed, "I bet you don't even know about Hyper Mode or how to get out of it! Well tell you what, I'll let you in. Hyper Mode is what you just saw, when the Pokémon goes a little insane and attacks the trainer instead of the Pokémon half the time. Really annoying, and only one way to snap it out of it, but I'm not gonna tell you what that is," the trainer smiled. Gary frowned.

"Whatever. Minin, use Spark!" Gary ordered. Though the mouse attacked and hit, Misdeveus' next Shadow Rush sent him flying. Now both Shadow Pokémon faced each other. The trainers soon realized that Shadow Rush wasn't very effective on other shadow Pokémon and that this was turning into a rather long battle. Then Gary had a thought. He'd need more Pokémon in this fight. And besides, this Pokémon was clearly troubled, it needed to be taken from these hands… and he had just the gloves to do the job. It was certainly wrong to steal another trainer's Pokémon, but maybe in this lawless town it wouldn't be questioned. Maybe…

Gary took a breath in and grabbed a ball from his belt. In his gloved hand it glowed with red light and he threw it.

"H-huh? What are you-?" the trainer gasped as the Pokeball encased her Misdeveus. It stopped shaking and flew back to Gary's hand. The trainer stared, then, to Gary's amazement the trainer grinned.

"Hey! You're a Snag'em trainee huh? Wicked. Oh well, I'll just go get another Shadow Pokémon by beating the Colosseum. You only have to be halfway decent to beat it. See ya kid" the trainer laughed again, walking off. Gary gaped from the trainer to the ball in his hand and back to the trainer. He'd just stolen a Pokémon. And the trainer didn't even care. Woah.

Amy was back in her cell at last. She shivered in the white, thin flannel clothes she'd been given. As Mirror B. left she huddled against the wall. As the footfalls and salsa music faded, she looked from her knees.

"Jesse?" She asked.

"Yeah?" was the immediate response. She frowned and shivered.

"How long did they wait, before they blinded you?"

"Well… they didn't actually do it just to blind me. It took a while. Just all the tests, and then they took samples… eventually I just couldn't see anymore. They might not even go that far with you. We might get killed before then."

Amy laughed darkly, "How cheery."

To her surprise he laughed too. "Yeah, I'm just a ray of sunshine aren't I?"

"Well you're better then a poke in the eye with a sharp stick… no offense."

"I should be offended that I'd better then a poke in the eye?"

Amy giggled. "Alright. Maybe I wasn't thinking."

"Maybe?"

"Okay, I wasn't thinking if you want me to be so specific," Amy scoffed. Jesse laughed. Amy smiled. "Don't worry Jesse, we'll get out of here long before they can do anything to us."

Jesse was silent for a while. Amy was about to question it when he said, "So, they have a new subject now."

"W-what?"

"They've got all they can from me now that my eyes… they're killing me tomorrow. Then they're going to start working on you. The guards were taunting me while you were gone."

Amy's eyes widened. "N-no way. They can't!"

"Of course they can. It doesn't matter. I've been here for ages, it'll be a relief," a pause, "I hope you make it out eventually though. So you can get back to your boyfriend."

Amy jolted. "Oh, Gary! I forgot he's looking for me, got to be! Then maybe… maybe there's still some hope, I mean… he's pretty clueless and distracted a lot but he's stubborn so maybe… maybe…"

"Maybe what?" came a male voice from outside Amy's cell. Her eyes flashed up and standing before her was a kid with dirty blond hair and dark glasses.

"Who are you?" Amy asked confused.

He smirked. "Name's Cail, you Amy?"

"Yes…" Amy said, cocking her head to one side and standing up.

"Amy? Who's there, is he with Cipher or…?" Jesse asked and Amy frowned.

"I don't know, some kid." Amy shrugged.

"You're boyfriend's being an idiot so I thought I should come save you before it was too late. I can get your friend too, I already knocked out the guards and took the key," Cail said with a grin, holding up a silver key on a ring.

"You're JOKING," Jesse's voice exclaimed, with a fierce edge of excitement.

"Nope, come on Aims," Cail said as he unlocked the cell. Amy ran outside and hugged him.

"You have no idea how good timing you have!" she said happily.

The two went to Jesse's cell next. However, just as they were unlocking it, they heard running from up the hall.

"Crap, must be a silent alarm, come on kid-ooh, ouch. Look what they did to you," Cail said with a low whistle as Amy opened the cell and took Jesse's hand, leading him out. His hand was sweaty, but Amy knew she had no time to grimace.

"Let's go!" she said to Cail who began running down the hall, away from the voices. Amy and Jesse were close behind, with Amy guiding the blind boy by the hand. He stumbled often.

However, upon turning a corner they found themselves facing a line of three men in strange different coloured cyber-game like uniforms. In front of each was a different middle evolution of a Johto starter Pokémon. Bayleef, Croconaw and Quilava faced them, and every one pulsed with a dark aura.

"Oh my gosh, they're all-" Amy started but Jesse finished.

"Shadow Pokémon. Three of them," he whispered.

"How the hell would you know? You're blind," Cail said with a snort. He glared in Cail's direction.

"That's why they still need Amy to study, I'm too damaged to bother with any more living tests but I still sense Shadow Pokémon without seeing them," Jesse said quietly. Cail rolled his eyes.

"Great. Well I assume neither of you have Pokémon with you so I'll have to battle three on one," Cail groaned. He tossed 3 Pokeballs. Out appeared a Staryu ('won it in a card game' was Cail's explanation upon its release), Porygon ('got it at the slots'), and Floatzel ('Got her when I was seven, won a bet with the kid down the street').

"Porygon, Tri Attack on Bayleef! Staryu, Psybeam on the alligator thing! Floatzel, use Waterfall on that… fire thing!" Cail called. His Pokémon knowledge seemed patchy but his Pokémon seemed to understand him well enough. They obeyed anyway. Then the Shadow Pokémon used a combined Shadow Rush, knocking out all Cail's Pokémon, save for Floatzel who still seemed to be hanging on. Wide eyed, Cail recalled his fainted Pokémon.

"Alright, get ready to run then," Cail said with a groan.

"I hear people coming from behind us," Jesse muttered to Amy. She bit her lip and nodded to Cail.

"USE HYDROPUMP!" Cail yelled. Floatzel blasted through the men and group of teens raced through the gap, down the halls. They reached a dead end door.

It was locked.

"OH SH- hang on a sec," Cail said looking to the right of the door.

"What is it?" Jesse hissed at Amy, still gripping her sweaty hand.

"A grate. We're apparently going to go into the ventilation," Amy groaned as Cail expertly removed the grate from the metal tunnel beyond. He got in first. Amy sent Jesse in afterwards, letting go of his hand. Then she entered after, clumsily pulling the grate on behind her and taking Cail's strange sticky putty he handed back to her to attach it.

Then they headed down into the darkness. Not a big switch for Jesse, but Amy terrified and Cail's hiss for silence in the echo chamber didn't help. Her heart beat fast as she listened for sounds of pursuit, or worse, the fans turning on. They were in the quiet for what seemed like hours. Cail mentioned it was getting dark when he got into the building. Now morning must be approaching. Then Jesse stopped and Amy bumped into him. "What's wrong?" she whispered.

"The ventilation is going straight up now," he said, sounding displeased.

"What? Then what do we do now?" Amy said, shivering. She'd gone through a vent before on the S.S. Anne, and later in Celadon, but not for this long. She'd only gone to the other side of a wall. Now she was supposed to do what?

Some scrambling up ahead as Cail adjusted his position and then he said, "Alright, keep pressure with your back and feet on the other side and sort of walk up, sliding your back up the other side. It's not that hard," Cail said and Amy heard sliding noises as he began pushing himself up. Jesse hesitated, but feeling around he followed suit. Amy moved up and got into position. Cail was right, the slippery sides of the shaft weren't so hard to travel up as she'd feared but still…

"What if one of you falls, you'll crush me!"

"Well then go back to Cipher, I'm sure they'll be much more gentle," Cail said sarcastically.

"We won't fall," Jesse assured Amy. Amy sighed.

"Alright." And so they climbed. They were in that vertical darkness for close to an hour, going painstakingly slowly. Even then Amy slipped twice and her heart hammered. Then Amy was hit by blinding light as Cail unscrewed the top of the grate and he and Jesse moved out to reveal it. They helped Amy out of the vent and her eyes slowly adjusted to the light. They were not on a roof, but in a small grassy field. The wind was blowing softly as Cail replaced the grate. Apparently it was morning. Amy was exhausted.

"Where are we?" Jesse asked, standing with no sign of weariness in him. "Are we outside? God…" he seemed in awe, though he couldn't see the blue morning sky stretching overhead.

"We're not even in Pyrite," Cail muttered, seeming annoyed, "Oh well, we're out. That's good at least." He pulled out a PokéNav. "We're in… Phenac City? How the hell did we get all the way over here? CRAP! Now that spiky haired kid's gonna try to break Amy out and she's not even there! Urg… maybe we can call Duking and get him to stop him," Cail muttered the last so Amy only heard Gary going to try to break in himself.

"Oh my god, Gary," Amy looked sick. Jesse had frozen at 'Phenac City'.

"We're in Phenac?" he said softly. Amy turned to him.

"Oh yeah, this is where your cousin Justy's supposed to be! He'll be able to help us stop Gary!" Amy said happily.

"I guess so," Jesse said frowning. Amy shivered in the breeze now, her white clothes billowing around her body. Cail noticed.

"Ah, here, take my vest before you freeze to death," he said handing her his vest that smelled strongly of smoke and dust. Amy put it on anyway, trying not to seem ungrateful. He'd just saved her skin after all. The three headed out from behind the trees and saw a small city bustling around them, with clear water fountains and white buildings.

"Oh, it's beautiful!" Amy said happily, for the slightest moment forgetting Gary. Then she took Jesse's hand and followed Cail as he went towards the small gym up a set of white stone steps.

Meanwhile, Gary was in the Colosseum fighting in the final battle. Why had it taken him so long to get there you may ask? Well after securing Misdeveus he went around the square looking for more Shadow Pokémon to complete a team. He managed to identify a Murcrow and a Skiploom at least, but it was hard. It turned out that Shadow Pokémon could sometimes use some of their original moves too so he had to battle them into a corner of using Shadow Rush on Plusle or Minin (who he was running out of potions to heal) and then capturing them was the next problem. But he finally got two (strangely with less reaction then Misdeveus' old trainer). With this team he had managed to get through the first three rounds and now he was fighting a Goldeen and Machop with Murcrow and Furret.

"Alright, Furret! Use Shadow Rush!" Gary ordered. Furret complied, knocking out Goldeen, but then started thrashing and growling. "Oh god, Hyper Mode" Gary groaned. So far he'd avoided it but he had no clue what to do. But at least this time it'd attack the other trainer not him. "Okay, use Quick Attack!" Gary was smacked hard by Furret and fell back "OKAY WHAT THE HELL?"

Then it finally occurred to him that he'd seen the other Shadow Pokémon snap out of Hyper Mode himself. They'd just called their Pokémon's names. Maybe Amy was right when she called him an idiot…

Nah, that was just ridiculous.

"FURRET!" Gary called. The Pokémon shook its head and looked slightly confused. Battle went on, and Gary gained an easy victory. Misdeveus' former trainer was right, you only need to be half deceit to beat most of these wanna-be trainers. Once Machop was down, Gary's hands clenched. Now he could finally rescue Amy. As he left the stadium he was approached by three nearly identical looking men in lab coats and strange man with an afro playing salsa music.

"So you're Gary Oak," The first lab coat man said, smiling.

"We've been hoping to congratulate you. Follow us, we have a prize for you downstairs," the second said. The afro man just laughed. Gary smiled and nodded as they showered him with praise over his victory and led him towards a staircase. Then Duking suddenly ran up to them. The other men narrowed their eyes and the afro man seemed to have slipped away.

"Gary! I just got a call from Amy, she's safe! Cail saved her, the sneaky brat! But hey, she's safe! They're in Phenac so you don't have to go through the Colosseum after all!" Duking said grinning. The second man in a lab coat made a note on his clip board. Then they all ran. Gary and Duking looked at each other. Then Gary scowled at this, but decided to let it go.

"I am really glad Amy's safe," he sighed and then stalked out of the stadium. It seemed he was not happy about missing out on his prize, or maybe missing out on saving Amy himself? "Where's Phenac?"

"To the East, you're going now? Shouldn't you get some sleep first? You've been battling all night…" Duking said with a frown.

"Huh? Really? I don't feel tired," Gary said with a shrug. Duking saw him to his motorcycle at the edge of town. He jumped on. "Thanks for all the help. Um, you're sure Amy's okay, right? And is in Phenac City?"

"Yes I'm sure. I saw her on the video phone; her eyes are just like Rui's," Duking smiled, then his smile dropped, "When you find her, you should get out of the region. It's not safe for her here."

"Yeah, you're right. We'll get out as soon as I find her," Gary nodded, mentally preparing himself to murder his grandfather when he got back to Pallet for sending the two of them out here to start with. As he crossed the desert though, a thought occurred to him that hadn't for a while. Amy's father was out here somewhere, trapped by Snag'em. If Amy found out, she'd want to save him, no matter the cost… Gary had a sinking feeling in his stomach as the sand passed below him.


	26. PreGym Confrontation

**Hidden In Shadows Part 4~ Pre-Gym Confrontation**

Amy groaned and stretched on the couch. Cail was already dozing next to her. They had been awake nearly twenty four hours and having called to tell Gary where they were they decided it was time to sleep a few winks, though Amy was finding that difficult. Jesse had opted to go without sleep and was catching up with his cousin Justy, who was shocked and yet intrigued by Jesse's endured torturing. Amy could hear Jesse explaining the situation fully to in the next room. Cail was less than interested in explaining or hearing explanations so he just crashed on the floor. Amy would've stayed with Jesse but she'd yawned and swayed at the wrong time into the wrong person, causing Justy to insist that she just get some sleep before she collapsed after he picked a stunned Jesse up off the ground where he'd been knocked.

Despite her weariness, Amy could do naught but lay awake listening to the murmurs of Jesse and wonder when Gary would arrive.

Gary was at that moment rushing into town, Plusle and Minin crying out from his heaving shoulders and hanging on for dear life. But Gary wasn't about to stop. He ran up to the first person he saw, a small child chasing a Castfoam around a fountain.

"Hey you! Kid! Have you seen a girl with long brown hair and blue eyes? Probably with a guy in a vest with blond hair and sunglasses, maybe smoking?" Gary asked, flagging the running boy down.

He seemed to think for a moment. "Um… Was the girl wearing white clothes with a grey vest?"

Gary frowned. "Um, she might be I guess, the vest sounds like Cail's… where did they go?"

"Oh, they were heading for the pre-gym. There was another boy too, with red hair and freckles and black clothes."

"Okay, pre-gym, gotcha. Where is that?" Gary asked, neither knowing nor caring who the other boy was at the moment.

"Oh, it's up that stairway there. They seemed to be running. The red haired guy seemed to be having trouble though, that girl was holding his hand."

"SHE WAS WHAT?" Gary shouted, eyes blazing. The kid's eyes watered and he shrank back.

"S-she was holding his hand, w-what's wrong with that? I thought they might be dating or something!"

"Amy is_ my_ girlfriend and no soulless ginger kid is going to move in on her!" Gary declared, taking off for the pre-gym. The kid's shaking subsided ad he turned to his Castfoam.

"I think it's mean to call them ginger kids," he said and the little grey Pokémon nodded fiercely in agreement.

Amy was actually at the edge of drifting off to sleep when the banging sound of the front door opening and an enraged yelling drove her to sit up. Cail snorted and jerked up a bit as well.

"W-What was that?" he groaned. Amy listened a moment a smiled.

"Gary"

"Oh, then I'm going back to sleep," Cail muttered, laying back down. Amy smirked and jumped out of bed, all sleepiness gone.

Amy opened the door to see Gary storming inside, spotting the back of Jesse's head, and going into a yelling fit.

"SO YOU THINK YOU CAN STEAL MY GIRLFRIEND YOU JERK? WHAT ARE YOU DOING HOLDING HER HAND I OUGHT TO BEAT YOU BLIND-SIDED!"

"Too late for that," Jesse snorted, turning to face Gary, though he couldn't see him he could hear where the voice came from. Gary froze.

"Oh you're… so Amy had to… oh," Gary said awkwardly, "So, erm, where's Amy?"

"Right here Gary," Amy said giving a little wave and a smirk. Gary let out a yell of happiness, accompanied by two shrieks from the Pichu-like Pokémon on his shoulders. He rushed over to Amy and threw his arms around her, smashing his lips against hers.

"GARY!" she screamed, pushing him back, "You don't have to do that right in front of everybody, it's embarrassing! And… why are there two shrieking rodent Pokémon on your shoulders?"

"It's a long story, and I assure you that you will learn it all in good time. But are you okay?" he said looking her up and down. She sighed wearily.

"Yes, I'm fine Gary. Really. This is Jesse, he was trapped by Cipher too, only he'd been there for months," her eyes became downcast, "If Cail hadn't come when he did, he would've been executed, and they would've started in on me."

Gary glanced at Jesse's mutilated eyes and then turned back to Amy. "Okay, so I owe Cail a thank you, where is he?"

"Sleeping in the other room, until your screaming vibrated a picture off the wall onto my head," Cail said in annoyance as he entered the room, a picture of a Piplup with a broken frame dangling from his hand.

"OH NO!" Justy wailed, "That was a priceless Pokasso Original!"

"Well blame Gary not me, he's the one that shook it off the wall," Cail said tossing the painting to the floor. Justy took some deep breathes.

"I-I suppose we should work on getting you three out of the region then," he said after a moment, "It's our best bet. From what I understand, Cipher doesn't operate much out of this region since the police here are so lax. The only real police force we have in the entire region is a two officer force in the jail of Pyrite town and a small base in Gateon Port, and they're mostly caught up catching thugs who are beating up children. So if we can get you out, you'll be okay. You're Amy Tanner correct?"

"Yes," Amy nodded

"Then stay with your parents, they'll be the best protection you'll have. Wes was the best Pokémon trainer I've ever seen, and I'm sure he married Rui. She was smart, they'll know what to do."

"Y-you've met my father?" Amy said in surprise.

"Yes, years ago but I recognized him on the television hugging you when you won your 4th tournament match in Indigo League." Justy smiled. "He was excellent, no wonder he made such a good Snag'em member! But he quit of course before he met Rui who'd run away from Cipher!"

"Um, back up a minute here, ran away from Cipher? You mean she was captured too?" Amy said in surprise. Gary had a clenching feeling in his stomach.

"No, she was working on the Shadow Pokémon project, but she left when it got too much for her. She was one of their top scientists, just like Wes was one of the top snaggers before he ran off with two small snag machines. I think the two teams would often have business deals, Cipher buying Pokémon that Snag'em stole from trainers to turn into Shadow Pokémon."

Amy felt faint. "I-I didn't know, he never told me, and my mom's been dead for a long time," Amy whispered.

Justy looked very upset. "Oh, I'm so sorry! I didn't know. I assure you, she was a wonderful girl as I knew her. But still, you should get back to your father."

"She can't," Cail said raising his eyebrows, "He was kidnapped by Snag'em the moment they spotted him in the region."

"HE WAS WHAT?" Amy yelped, whirling towards Cail, "H-How do you know?"

"Gary mentioned it when he was talking to Duking. Apparently right after you were kidnapped your dad showed up and spoke to Gary. He gave Gary his old Snag machines just before Snag'em got him."

"And you didn't mention this immediately _why_?" Amy rounded on Gary, who looked away.

"I-I figured you'd want to go rescue him…"

"OF COURSE I want to rescue him! He's my FATHER!" Amy stamped her foot, "We have to save him. I am not going to leave the region until we do."

"Urg…" Gary's face was turned red and he glared at Cail "Why'd you have to say anything in the first place?"

"Well I think she might've found out when she went home and her dad was gone!" Cail snarled defensively.

"Will you all quit shouting please?" Jesse said and managed to gather everyone's attention for the moment. "Now, obviously we have to save Amy's dad. So our first step is to figure out where Snag'em headquarters are right now."

"Oh, hold on just a moment Jesse," Amy said kindly, "We need to get my Pokémon first, did you bring them Gary?"

"Nah, he even forgot his own Pokémon back in Gateon Port," Cail sniggered.

"Oh, then that explains why you can have Plusle and Minin on your team then. Well then let's go to the Pokémon Center here and get our Pokémon transferred over, and get the Pokémon that aren't going to fit on your team now to Professor Oak's," Amy said in an accommodating manner.

"Erm, that would be, well, all of them," Gary said uncomfortably

"Huh?" Amy said confused.

Cail raised an eyebrow, "Yeah, I know I gave you my Furret, but there's no wild Pokémon in Orre so how did you manage to fill up your team?"

Gary hesitated and held his hands together in front of him, twiddling his fingers and tried to come up with a reason other than thievery. "Um, well er..."

"Oh hey, I recognize those gloves!" Justy said pointing to Gary's hands.

"What? Uh, no you don't!" Gary said waving his hands in front of him and then jolted, putting them behind his back.

"No, no I'm sure I do…" he said reaching over and grabbing his hand, holding it up to examine as Gary tried to struggle away.

"NO! It's, they're, uh…"

"Yes! These were Wes' old Snag'em gloves! They were actually Snag machines used to steal Pokémon from trainers! Of course, Wes only used them on Shadow Pokémon owned by Cipher. He gave one of these to Rui as well. In fact Rui acquired a rather beautiful Ninetails that way."

Amy's eyes widened. If the Ninetails was a shadow Pokémon perhaps it did kill her mom… the sad train of thought cut out when it hit her. "Gary, _have you been stealing Pokemon?_"

"I-uh, well, they were Shadow Pokémon, and the trainers didn't seem to care!" Gary whined.

"SO YOU _HAVE_ BEEN STEALING POKEMON?" Amy shrieked. Gary fell to his knees begging forgiveness, as Amy looked… very scary. Cail stared.

"God... I knew you were an idiot Gary but I didn't know you were also one of those wimpy scared-of-their-girlfriend boyfriends too," Cail mused. Jesse was just sniggering at Gary's begging. Justy seemed a little confused.

"Well what kind of trainer doesn't care if their Pokémon is taken away?" Amy snapped. Justy raised his head a little.

"Actually, Rui and Wes mentioned most trainers seemed non-chalet, or even relieved to have their Shadow Pokémon taken away. In fact, I think it might be because even though most people cannot see the auras, people will still feel uneasy around them and don't really feel much love for Pokemon with them. Rui and Wes kept several Shadow Pokemon though, in hopes of someday finding a cure for what Cipher did to them," Justy explained.

"Huh, yeah I think I get what you mean. I usually like to keep my trophy Pokémon but I was easy to give up that weird Furret. I thought it was because he kept attacking people and would get me in trouble if I kept it but now that I think about it I did sort of feel a little uncomfortable around it, like it was going to decide to attack me at any time," Cail said scratching his lip and pulling out a cigarette.

"Not inside please!" Justy snapped. Cail rolled his eyes and headed out the front door for a smoke. Gary looked down at his Pokeballs.

"Um, okay but, I don't really feel afraid of the Shadow Pokémon I have. I mean, I already know they're going to attack me, but I don't feel uneasy around them, they're really powerful!" Gary said looking back up. Amy frowned.

"Well, to be honest I've only seen that one Makuhita, maybe you could let one of your Shadow Pokémon out so I could look at it? I want to know what we're up against," Amy asked.

Gary frowned. "You aren't up against anything! We are going home before you get hurt again!"

"I'm fine Gary, release a Shadow Pokémon now," she said narrowing his eyes. Gary sighed and sent out Skiploom. Amy's eyes widened at the dark aura pulsing around the otherwise normal-looking Pokémon and saw Jesse go through tremors at its presence. Justy looked at it with raised eyebrows.

"Fascinating, it looks completely normal to me but it's clear that Amy and Jesse see something more…" Justy said without paying mind to Jesse's clear inability to see anything.

Amy nodded. "Yes, it's very… oh gosh!" she cried and jumped back and Jesse let out a short yell as well as the aura grew and turned into a dark bloody red colour. Skiploom turned toward Gary and leapt at him.

"AAAAH!" Gary yelled, "S-Skiploom!" he stuttered and the Pokémon stopped, cocking its body to one side and blinking curiously.

"Huh? Its aura shrank…" Amy said softly, and sure enough Jesse noticed the drop of power and said so.

Justy nodded. "Yes, Rui told me before that Shadow Pokémon auras seem to decrease when their name is called while in hyper mode, or when you walk around with them for long periods of time or even when you give them items. But the amount it decreases by varies with the Pokémon's personality."

"Well if that's the case, why not just decrease the Pokémon's aura until its gone?" Jesse asked.

"Well according to Rui, in order to stop a shadow Pokémon from losing its entire aura (since Cipher didn't want that to occur) they set up a special end lock or something. When you reach far enough to the lock, the Pokémon can't use Shadow Rush without going into hyper mode and becomes far more violent than usual, and would also give off a DNA signature that Cipher would detect, collect, and torture back to full Shadow Aura. Though at that point the Pokemon does gain a certain sense of itself and can use most of its original move set," Justy explained, "Wes and Rui were sure there was a way to undo the final lock but they never found it."

Gary cocked his head to one side. "What did Cipher do to those Pokémon anyway?"

Jesse's blind eyes narrowed. "They closed the door to their hearts."

Gary and Amy stared, silent. They looked at each other.

"That's just so… so…" Amy whispered, trailing off.

"Cheesy," Gary finished.

"Yeah," Cail snorted, having come back in from outside without anyone really noticing.

"NO! I was going to say horrible!" Amy snapped.

"Amy's right, it's like mind control! Blocking off all emotion except rage and anger, making them fighting machines, powerful from the adrenaline rush!" Jesse said in anger, "They have no memory of before they were Shadow Pokémon, they barely remember the last thing they did AS Shadow Pokémon!"

Gary frowned. "Then why not call it mind control or anger channelling? 'Closing the door to their heart' is so…"

"Cheesy," Cail repeated for Gary, looking slightly amused. Jesse looked insulted.

"Look, it doesn't matter! We just have to find Amy's dad and then you can all get safely out of the region," Jesse said firmly. Amy sighed and nodded.

"Yes, let's go to the Pokémon center and get out my Pokémon," she said, heading for the door. Gary and Jesse nodded and followed. Cail smiled and even held open the door as they stepped out.

Out of seemingly nowhere, a group of Cipher agents stormed in, quickly grabbing Amy and Jesse and twisting their arms behind their backs. Justy and Gary were pushed to the floor and held down by two growling Houndoom. Amy saw they weren't shadow Pokémon, but they still looked vicious.

"What's going on?" Amy cried, "Cail, help!" Cail chuckled.

"Sorry Aims, usually I play for myself but this time I found Cipher to be the highest bidder of my services," he said as Mirror B. handed him a large sum of cash. Gary's mouth dropped open.

"YOU WERE BEING PAID BY CIPHER THE WHOLE TIME?" he yelled, and then silenced at the snarl of the Houndoom. In fact he whimpered a bit.

Cail shrugged. "Not the whole time, just since I went out for a smoke. I saw them and was going to tell on them but they made me a rather large offer to keep you in the dark till they got their troops together."

Amy stared in pain of her twisted arms. How could he double-cross them like that, after all he'd gone through to save them?

"Anyway, now that I've been paid, I'll just have to…" he placed the cash in his pockets and pulled out his three Pokeballs, "Save the day."

"Huh? You double-crossing little punk!" Mirror B. snapped, pointing a disco finger at Cail in anger.

"Triple-crossing actually," he grinned, and released Staryu, Porygon, and Floatzel. "Floatzel, Save Gare-bear and that, um, Jesse's cousin guy from the Houndoom with Aqua Jet!" the giant otter Pokémon streaked towards them, surrounding her body with blue water and crashing into them. Both trainers jumped to their feet. Plusle and Minin, who had been cowering in a corner when the Cipher goons came in, ran back to Gary's shoulders.

"Lot of help you guys are," Gary muttered, "GO FURRET!" he said, releasing the one shadow Pokémon he's finally figured out all the attacks of and knows the only one it can seem to use, which was Sand Attack. "USE SAND ATTACK ON THE GUYS HOLDING AMY!"

The ferret Pokémon leapt forward and sent a shower of sand at the man holding Amy. He cried out and Amy freed herself. Justy, who had sent out a Maril, was sending jets of water gun at the guy holding Jesse, but it was no good and Jesse was getting soaked.

"Uh, retreat for now!" Mirror B. said under the gaze of Floatzel, Staryu and Porygon looming over him. He nearly tripped on his way out. "And bring that boy you've still got!"

"NO YOU DON'T!" Amy yelled, leaping on the back of the man holding Jesse. He clawed at his arms and he started yelling, trying to buck her off.

"Aaah! W-what's going on?" Jesse moaned, being jerked around like crazy.

"Get the girl!" Mirror B. said clapping his hands now.

"NO! Plusle, Minin, D-distract him or something!" Gary said throwing the rodent Pokémon at Mirror B. They landed in his afro and burrowed into it, sending electrical charges through his scalp.

"OW! NOOOOO!" he cried, tearing at his frying hair. As most of the men tried to help him get the two out, Cail sent his Porygon and Staryu to pry Jesse away from his captor. It worked and as they did this Floatzel yanked Amy off his back.

"Okay, get out of there!" Gary yelled at Plusle and Minin. The two jumped out of the sizzling nest of sparks and Mirror B.'s eyes snapped on Gary as the two returned to his shoulders.

"Y-you boy, Gary Oak, you will rue the day you messed up MY fabulous hair! You mark my words," he hissed, eyes watering. Then he got out a comb and touched it to his afro. It disintegrated, leaving him bald.

"AAAAAAIIIIIII!" he screamed, and wailing he grabbed the Cipher goons and ran out the door, cursing Gary's name.

"Well, on the bright side, I can treat dinner if you guys want," Cail said waving the money. Everyone groaned and fell on the floor, breathing hard. Gary turned to Amy.

"What were you thinking jumping on that guy?"

"I didn't want Jesse to be captured, I didn't know that was wrong," Amy said huffily.

"Well you never did that for me did you?"

Amy raised an eyebrow. "I don't think we were ever in that sort of situation before…"

Gary growled under his breath and sent a glare at Jesse, which obviously he couldn't see, but he still seemed a little confused at Gary's angry tone.

"Well, I'm very grateful for your heroics Amy, but I don't want you to go putting yourself in danger for my sake," Jesse said, sounding perhaps a little amused?

With Gary seething they sat in silence for a few more minutes.

"So, should we go to the Pokémon Center now?" Amy said getting to her feet.

"Yes! Let's go!" Gary said jumping up after her.

"Okay Jesse! Let's go!" Amy said taking his hand and helping him up. Gary shook at this but Amy either didn't notice or pretended not to. They headed for the door "You coming Cail?"

Cail raised an eyebrow. "Uh, sure," he said getting up _she wants to just go ahead to the Pokémon Center after all that? Geez that girl has a will of steel._

As they walked out the door, Justy still sat on the floor, looking a bit abandoned.

"Well, if you guys don't want to invite me along I- I guess I'll just stay here then," he said into the empty room with a sigh as Amy and friends walked out into the sunlight.

_(( Joyful Note: Bleh, I don't like this chapter much but I suppose as I'm still editing these as opposed to straight up writing them I won't do too much to it. I guess bear with me through the rough patches, I'm sure by this point you'll just keep reading as I update anyway... I don't like this exposition but not everyone has played Colleseum and Gale of Darkness so I feel I need to explain these aspects.))_


	27. Phone Call

**Hidden In Shadows Part 5~ Phone Call**

_((Joyful Note: Huh. This chapter is shorter than I thought. Oh well, I'm still editing these rather than writing them, but that won't last for too much longer I don't think. Oh well. Then I have to actually think up stuff for this again. I wonder if I should actually continue after this season or go on with the next two I'd planned out... well we'll see how I feel after finishing this one off I guess. Cheers.))_

Amy was talking rapidly to Jesse and Cail, explaining all about Professor Oak and his apparent wish to see his grandson and his girlfriend dead via sending them on a dangerous mission in Orre and everything about her Pokémon adventure up to this point as Gary was explaining their current situation to his grandfather over the Phenac Pokémon Center video phone. Amy had already gotten her Pokémon safely into her pockets. Gary kept his shadow Pokémon, except for Skiploom. He traded that to Prof. Oak for Socrates, since the professor wanted a Shadow Pokémon to study. Oh, and the rodent twins had run off into the city to explore. Gary secretly hoped they'd stay away, they were seriously annoying, and maybe just the slightest bit creepy.

"Wait, so, you witnessed the expulsion of inter-dimensional beings from their world into ours and saved our entire world, yet you couldn't come in first in the Pokémon League?" Cail said, raising an eyebrow. Amy glared.

"Okay one, I came in fourth! That is very hard thank-you-very-much! And two, we didn't exactly save the world, Blaine did in the end," Amy said huffily.

"And you saw a pretty much pure evil Pokémon escape from the head of Team Rocket, and have yet to alert any authorities what so ever?"Jesse said twitching.

"Well… yes… but I'm sure it'll be fine!" Amy said grinning a little too widely with a small sweat drop working its way down her forehead.

"Uh-huh," Jesse and Cail said together, both seeming slightly confused at Amy's rapid fire story-telling and her apparent following of cosmic events.

Gary meanwhile was still talking to Prof. Oak.

"So you send us where Amy is in the most danger! I am going to-"

"Now Gary, before you get into a rant, have you seen your other set of grandparents yet? You do remember that's what you were sent out to do in the first place right?" his grandfather said kindly. Gary blinked.

"Um…," he rubbed his forehead, "Well STILL… You have to send reinforcements or something! Amy wants to find her father herself for crying out loud! And... when were we supposed to visit Agate anyway? The second we get here Amy was captured, we only just saved her and got back together again!"

"Oh, well I'm sure you'll do fine! You're all 16 and 17, ten-year-olds have saved the world before! You can surely save a kidnapped man! Toodle-loo!" Prof. Oak said hanging up. Gary hung up the phone, grimacing, full of sweat drops, and twitching like mad. He whirled around, still with the same face.

"WELL! Off to Agate Town I guess," he said, looking extremely irritated.

"What, that Senior's Center? Forget it," Cail said rolling his eyes.

"Well my grandparents are there! Apparently they have something to say to me or something. So Amy, let's go," Gary said, rising. Amy looked surprised.

"What, right now? Sure we've rested a bit and eaten, but-"

"Okay but what if Cipher comes back? I think if we're going to investigate this, it's best to stay on the move don't you?" Gary grinned. Amy cocked her head to one side.

"That's… actually a good point Gary. Huh. Okay I agree then. Jesse, let's go-"

Gary snapped, "What? Why is he coming?"

"Well Cipher's after him too aren't they? If we have to keep moving so does he!" Amy growled. Jesse raised his hand.

"Um, if I'm a problem I don't mind staying he-"

"SHUT UP KID!" Gary roared. Jesse leaned back away from him. Cail shook his head.

"Gare, you need to seriously chill out."

"Yeah! Leave Jesse alone!" Amy shouted.

"You too Aims, both of you are seriously in cat fight mode and need to relax," Cail said rising to his feet. "If you ask me, Jesse could just stay here with his cousin. Heck, I'll even stay here too if it would make you feel better about it. I could stand it for a while; this is a nice place if I get free room and board. You can go see your grandparents, come back, and then you can take Jesse out of the region."

"That sounds… reasonable," Jesse sighed, "I wish I didn't have to be protected. If I still had my Pokémon at least I could be of some use, right now I feel more like a burden."

"You had Pokémon Jesse?" Amy asked, surprised.

Jesse smirked. "Well of course. You didn't think I came all the way to Orre by myself with no protection did you? But… Cipher took all my Pokémon. They turned them into Shadow Pokémon and shipped them out."

"What!" Amy said, startled, "Well, what did you have? We'll look for them!"

Jesse lowered his head. "It wouldn't matter if you did, they wouldn't know me. They wouldn't be the same."

"Even so…" Amy began but Jesse shook her head.

"No. Don't get distracted, you'll have your hands full saving your father without worrying about me."

Gary grinned. "Yeah Amy, he's right! Come on, we should get going. After we see my grandparents, well, who knows? Maybe what he has to say involves the Shadow Pokémon! So let's go!" Gary said grabbing Amy's hand and pulling her to her feet as well. Cail helped up Jesse and consented to hold his wrist to lead him back to Justy's.

Amy hesitated though. "I think we should at least go back to the Pre-Gym to make sure they'll be okay."

"Amy!" Gary whined but she was determined. They headed back to the pre-gym together. Justy seemed to have been busy.

"Jesse! Okay, come, follow me! Oh right, hang on," Justy said jumping over the variety of objects all over the floor and leading Jesse back to the center.

"Justy? What are you doing?" Jesse asked, stumbling over a fire truck on the ground.

"I think if we train you like this you'll be able to get around easily without seeing! I can get you a cane, and maybe a seeing eye Growlith, it'll be great!" Justy said happily.

"Well, that might be fun to watch anyway…" Cail said with a smirk and a chuckle. Amy glared.

"Hey! You can't just-"

"No Amy, it's a good idea, I guess. Besides, I should do something while you're gone," Jesse smiled reassuringly.

"Well… alright," Amy said, still seeming unsure. At Gary's urging, he managed to get her away from them, out through town again, past the fountain. (The little boy with the Castfoam looked scared and ducked behind the fountain as they passed, to Amy's confusion.)

At the motorcycle Amy jumped into the passenger car. Plusle and Minin appeared again and leapt into the car with her. They shrieked in delight and Gary groaned. Suddenly a thought occurred to her. "Um, Gary, where did you get a motorcycle anyway?"

"Oh, you're dad said I could use his," Gary said, revving the engine.

Amy looked at Gary in surprise. "My dad?" she faced the front. "I didn't know he had a motorcycle… I never saw him with one anyway." Gary didn't hear her over the motorcycle however, and quickly sped away from the oasis town, over the sand.

"I'M GOING TO STOP IN PYRITE REALLY QUICK TO REFUEL; DUKING CAN HOPEFULLY TAKE THESE THINGS BACK!" Gary yelled over the roaring wind, indicating the Plusle and Minin squealing in glee at the speed. Amy sighed. At least on a motorcycle Gary couldn't talk very long without going hoarse. She hoped her father was okay and this detour would help rather than hinder their quest to find him.

In Pyrite, they quickly refuelled. Duking served as something of a bodyguard. He said Amy looked just like her mom and basically left no opportunity for Gary to press the little cheering rodents back on the bulky body builder.

While Amy was politely listening to Duking reminisce, Gary was wandering around Duking's office. At the back he spied a bookshelf with a small button next to it. Not to be one to miss out on doing things he probably shouldn't, he pushed it. To his shock, the bookcase slide back revealing a set of stairs leading down. This part didn't surprise him so much as the fact that Amy and Duking seemed not to have noticed at all, despite Plusle and Minin shrieking in glee. He walked down the stairs and found himself in a small cave, with a little boy and girl gathered around a computer.

Suddenly, the little girl turned and saw Gary, letting out a yelp. "What are you doing down here?"

"Huh?" the little boy turned as well, "Yeah! This is a private club! Kids only! Aw, fine you can stay," he sighed.

"Um, right," Gary said raising an eyebrow, seeing the screen of the computer had a webcam shot of a group of boys in a dark room. "What are you kids doing anyway?"

"Oh, you want to see?" the little girl said happily dragging Gary by the arm to the computer, "This is Net and the other kids from The Under."

"The Under? I thought that was just a rumour."

The boy shook his head. "No, it's real but Cipher's been getting it wiped off the map. They took it over completely, the kids from the Under are in hiding right now, sending messages up to us. So far, Net's been able to hack into Cipher's database and got a partial list of all the Shadow Pokémon they made, right Net?"

"Sure did," the boy on the computer screen grinned, "Hey, are you fighting Cipher?" he asked Gary.

"Uh, I suppose. Actually, I'm more focused on saving my girlfriend's father, he was kidnapped by Snag'em," Gary replied.

Net seemed to be thinking. "I know Snag'em does business with Cipher but other than that I don't know much about them. I would think that Cipher would have some files on them, if you want I could do some hacking. Come back in about a day or two and I'll tell you what I find out."

Gary raised his eyebrows. "Oh, okay, thanks!" he said in mild surprise. Then he headed out of the cave room just as Amy was shaking off Duking.

"Yes Duking, I would love to hear more about my mother's 'way' with Plusle and Minin, but we really have to be going, right Gary?" Amy said grinning at Gary with noticeable sweat drops.

"Oh, yeah she's right Duking, but we'll be back in a couple of days okay?" Gary said snaking an arm around Amy's waist and the two said final goodbyes to Duking before the two headed out to the motorcycle again… with Plusle and Minin cackling gleefully from Gary's shoulders.

"Uh, you know Gary," Amy said uncomfortably as they got on the motorcycle, "originally I thought those two were just annoying, but they now seem a little… creepy…"

"Yeah, but Duking seems to be avoiding taking them back. Anyway, they haven't done anything that bad yet, and they're fair in battle I guess, so we're keeping them for now."

"Yeah, we don't seem to have much choice," she said looking closely at Plusle who flashed her an evil looking smirk and then squealed, hugging Gary's head. "Erm…" Amy looked a bit freaked as Gary revved the engine and took off onto the sand again.


	28. Grandparents

**Hidden in Shadows Part 6~ Grandparents**

Amy was very glad to get out of the motorcycle side car when they finally reached Agate Town. It'd been well over three hours and the sun was hot. The back of her neck was sunburned, as were the bodies of a whining Plusle and Minin. With careful turns, Amy surveyed the surroundings. It was pretty town, in the small part of the Orre region that was still green. Though, like the rest of Orre, no native wild Pokémon lived here. Instead, this community housed aging Pokémon trainers, not only from this region but many others who decided to live out their remaining days among a peaceful setting with their Pokemon partners. Gary's maternal grandparents were among them.

"So, where do your grandparents live, Gary?" Amy asked, stretching and yelping as her neck twisted wrong.

"We should get something to put on that," Gary observed, appearing concerned, "And I'm not exactly sure where they live. I've never actually visited them. I've only talked on the video phone before, and they've come to visit me a few times. But they were pretty famous in their day, so if we ask around a bit we should find them pretty fast."

"Alright… wait," Amy said lowering her eyelids, "If they have a video phone… then _WHY_ didn't we just _CALL_ them to get this message?"

"Oh hey, let's ask these people over there!" Gary said quickly running off, Plusle and Minin clutching onto his shoulders, squealing in pain from their twin sunburns and sending out mild electric shocks until Gary forced them inside Pokeballs. Amy groaned and followed.

Gary cornered an old gentleman and what appeared to be his wife. "Hey, I'm Gary Oak, the grandson of great trainers Beluh and Eagun?" smug as always, "Also Prof. Oak on my dad's side," he added, "And this is my girlfriend Amy! You erm, wouldn't know where their house is would you?"

The old lady grinned, her dentures gleaming in the sun. "Oh, you're their grandson eh? I've heard many good things about you! Take after your mom we heard, travelling around, got in the Pokémon league right? Course you didn't WIN that… I did though, back in my day!" she laughed, "Guess you've got your mom's spirit and your dad's talent!"

Gary's eyes widened and he flushed. Amy started; she suddenly realized that Gary never bragged about his parents, only his grandparents. As a matter of fact, she rarely saw his parents. They seemed nice enough but they were off on business trips a lot, and traveled the world too. She wondered why he wouldn't…

"Hey! I just asked where my grandparents are, so tell me!" Gary growled. The gentlemen clucked his tongue and chuckled.

"So rude, if you want to know then my wife and I challenge you two youngsters to a double battle. If you win, we'll tell you!" he cackled. Amy frowned but Gary fiercely agreed.

"Okay, fine, who're you using then?" Amy asked Gary.

"Uh, Socrates I guess, I don't want to risk using a shadow Pokémon on these two," Gary replied, "So does that mean you're using Isis?"

Amy thought about it "Well… I could, but I think I'd prefer Avion, just for variety."

Gary shrugged. "Okay, fine by me. His wings are healed right?"

"Yep."

They released their Pokémon. The old couple released theirs as well, a Weepinbell and a Charmelon.

Amy turned to her Fearow. "Avion! Drill Peck on Weepinbell!"

"Use Razor Leaf on Fearow, Isabella!" the old lady yelled. The sharp leaves zoomed through the air, beating off Avion who screeched and fell back, ending its attack. Amy's eyes widened. That was a hard hit for a grass attack on a flying type.

"Erm, Socrates! Night Shade on Charmelon!" Gary ordered.

"Charles! Fire Spin on Umbreon!" the old man roared. The fire engulfed Socrates, blocking the Night Shade. Amy quickly had Avion blow the fire away with Whirlwind and turned back on their opponents who were both smirking.

"What's wrong kids? Didn't expect to get beat by a couple of old cronies like us?" the woman snickered.

"Forget it, we've got years of experience! You can't win! Charles, use Flamethrower on Fearow!"

"Isabella, Vine Whip on Umbreon!"

Both attacks lashed out and Gary got an idea. "Socrates, jump in front of Avion!" The black Pokémon leapt as the Vine Whip headed for him, and Weepinbell/Isabella's vines followed loyally trying to strike the dark type.

"Avion, dive!" Amy cried, and her Pokémon flew low, pushing Socrates down. The Vines flew through empty air in time to get hit by Charmelon/Charles' Flamethrower. They flames travelled up the vines to a screaming Weepinbell.

"AAAIIII! NO! MY PRECIOUS ISABELLA!" the woman screamed, "You idiot! Hit them not Isabella!" she yelled at her husband, cracking him on the shin with her cane. He howled and started hopping up and down on one foot.

"You crazy old bat! That wasn't my fault that your Pokémon put its vines right in the middle of Charles' attack!"

"Well now I guess Charles is in the way of MY attack! Isabella! Stun Spore!" Charles became paralyzed and soon the old couple were battling each other, rather than Gary and Amy. In fact, they seemed to have forgotten all about them.

"Um… maybe we should ask someone else…" Gary said slowly and Amy nodded.

"Yeah, they seem busy…"

"I hope we're not like that someday when we get married," Gary whistled.

"Yea- hey!" Amy's said turning toward him in shock, "What do you mean _**married**_?"

Suddenly another old man ran onto the street. He wore a long robe and had thick silver hair with a beard as well as a Pikachu at his side.

"Pika! Use Thunderbolt on all of them!" he shouted. The Pikachu let loose a huge charge of electricity, lighting up both old battlers and their Pokémon. They fell to their knees and groaned, looking up.

"Oh! Eagun! Um, we were just-"

"Fighting again? You know the rules! Battling is for fun, and as challenges to improve yourselves, not to settle arguments! Your Pokémon could be seriously hurt battling for revenge."

"W-with all due respect Eagun, your Pika did more damage then we-"the old man began but Eagun gave him a glare that sent both into an apologies. They recalled their Pokémon and hurried away, hopefully to the Pokémon center. Eagun sighed and noticed Amy and Gary.

"Gary! It's great to see you! Oak said you were coming with your girlfriend, is this her? She's a cute one!" he winked and Amy blushed brightly.

"Um, well, we heard you had message for us?" Amy asked uncomfortably.

"Oh right yes! Follow me to the house kids!" he said heading up a steep slope like it was flat. Gary and Amy tried to follow at his speed but quickly fell behind and were panting hard by the time they reached the top. Eagun was waiting patiently.

"Don't worry kids, it takes many years of traveling to build up my kind of endurance!" he said with a booming laugh. Amy wondered if all the Agate residents were in such good shape. When they reached the home of Gary's grandparents they discovered they seemed to live in either a tree-shaped house or an actual tree hollowed out for a home. Eagun led the way inside where his wife presumably was sitting on the couch knitting. The TV was blaring as well.

"Beluh! Gary and his girlfriend's here!" Eagun said merrily.

"Um, yes, and my name is Amy," Amy said with a small frown. Beluh chuckled.

"Oh Amy dear, don't mind Eagun, he's terrible with names at the best of times, why do you think his Pikachu is named Pika? But in any case," she became serious, "We do have important information for you."

They stood in silence for a moment before Gary said, "Okay well, what is it?"

"What's what? OH! The message! Yes…" Eagun smiled, "Well, we found out a new way to lower the aura on Shadow Pokémon! In this town's Pokémart they've sold special smelling salts for Pokémon, they've done so for decades! Apparently a trainer came here not long ago with a Shadow Pokémon and used a smelling salt on it. According to Elsie who was present at the time and can see the auras, the level went down considerably."

"Really? That is important. And it explains why you couldn't say over the phone or outside, Cipher could be listening anywhere and they can't find out about Elsie," Amy said nodding.

"Um… well actually after that call to Prof. Oak got cut off the phones around Agate have been down, someone probably forgot to pay the phone company," Eagun explained.

"Oh…" Amy said and there was silence again. Suddenly the TV blared with a News Flash.

_Reports that explosions were heard in Phenac City's Pre-Gym have just been confirmed! We believe this to be the work of Team Snag'em and Pyrite's Police are telling all able trainers to go and help out!_

"Ph-Phenac?" Amy whispered, "JESSE!" She bolted from the house. Gary twitched where he was standing and didn't move.

"Who's Jesse dear?" Beluh asked, already putting down her knitting and Eagun was putting on his boots and grabbing a motorcycle helmet.

"He was captured by Cipher for seeing Shadow Auras and they ended up blinding him. Cail he saved him when he helped me rescue Amy when they caught her too- it's a long story. Amy has tried her best not to let him out her sight since, he's staying with Cail and his cousin Justy right now," he registered that both his grandparents were almost in complete motorcycle gear, "Um, where do you two think you're going?"

"Why to help of course! The lady on the TV said all able trainers!" Beluh said with a giggle and they passed him out the door. Gary stared, and followed quickly.

On the edge of the city Gary couldn't find Amy anywhere. A man told him that a girl matching Amy's description had run to the edge of the city, released a Dragonair and flew off in the direction of Phenac at top speed. Gary flew into a rage that his grandparents clucked their tongues at before they all got on motorcycles (each of his grandparents had their own) and took off across the desert. As it was a four hour straight ride… Gary wondered if Amy would have a shorter time, and hoped to God that she'd be alright.

In Phenac, Amy showed up to a ghost town. No one was outside. She recalled Dragonair and instead released Harmony, telling her to be ready to fire Thunderbolt at a moment's notice. As she approached the silent pre-gym she began to speed up until she was at a run.

She flung open the pre-gym doors and yelled "JESSE? JUSTY? CAIL?"

"A-Aims? That you?" Cail's voice. She spun on her heel, winced at her sunburn, and ran for the sound to a closet. She pulled open the door and saw Justy and Cail tied up on the floor. Justy was gagged; Cail seemed to have gotten his off. Amy wasted no time getting them untied.

"What happened?" Amy asked wide-eyed.

"Snag'em goons," Cail groaned, stretching and reaching for a smoke "The bastards... they took our Pokémon, the money I got from Cipher, and Jesse. I'm sorry Aims, there was like, fifty of them. They basically took out the whole City at once, not to mention about twenty trainers that showed up to help."

Amy began to hyperventilate. "You… you've got to be joking! How could this… NO! NO! I was going to protect him! Gary said he'd be fine… and now…" she swallowed, "Where would they take him?"

"Well, judging by the organization of the crime, I'd say Cipher was the mastermind here, so Jesse is probably with them again." Amy's heart raced.

"So where would Cipher take him? Would my dad be there to do you think?" she added as an afterthought.

"I think Snag'em would likely deal with your father themselves. But for Cipher… I don't know," Justy shook his head.

"Eh, he's probably in the Under," Cail said with a shrug, "Cipher took over that whole city over a year ago, and have been quickly cutting an already secretive city off to the world so people are now even more sure it's just a rumour. I lived there for a while before that, but managed to escape as it was being taken over. Been down a couple times since then, it hasn't changed much except you need a Cipher uniform to get in or out," he smirked, "I guess you'll want to go save him?"

"Of course! Justy, you stay here and rescue the Phenac people. I'll leave you Harmony to help," Harmony gave a shocked look and Amy turned to her, "I'm counting on you Harmony, do exactly as Justy says unless you can think of something better," Harmony nodded firmly and Justy seemed a bit put out that Amy seemed to think a Pokemon could think of better ideas than he could.

"Alright, Cail, let's go!" Amy said and the two headed for the edge of the city. In a cloud of dust Gary and his grandparents pulled up, roughly half an hour after Amy had gotten there. After a quick explanation of events, Amy jumped behind Gary on his motorcycle and locked her arms around his waist. Cail got in the sidecar and the group took off, Gary chanting to himself that they were just going to save the Pokémon, Jesse was a side note. A side note. Oh who was he kidding? Amy was hugging him right now, but she could easily be falling for Jesse! He had to make sure that didn't happen, no matter the cost!"

"GARY!" Amy screamed and he swerved, narrowly avoiding a rock.

"Eyes on the ground, Gare!' Cail shouted, clutching the sides of his seat with white knuckles. This might be a long trip.


	29. The Under

**Hidden in Shadows Part 7~ The Under**

Eagun and Beluh pulled up in front of Pyrite first, followed by Cail and then Gary and Amy as the sun was beginning to set. Cail had said that although The Under ran along beneath the desert floor the only real entrance was under Pyrite. Cipher had heavy guards on all other entrances but because so few people knew about the Pyrite entrance that it had minimal security. The group had to inconspicuously enter and cross Pyrite to the same building that Amy's parents Wes and Rui rescued Plusle years ago. Amy thought maybe that was a bad idea. Plusle and Minin were out again and even Beluh and Eagun thought the two seemed a bit gremlin-like in their twin grins. Gary was apparently prepping himself, and unaware he was talking out loud.

"Okay Gary, we can do this, you were born to be great! So what if we're saving that Jesse kid? It's not like Amy likes him or anything. And we have to save people's Pokémon right? So we can do this! So what if Cail doesn't have Pokémon? The rest of us do, and when we're finished we can go home! And then Amy and I will-"

Amy stared at him. "Gary, why are you talking to yourself?"

"H-huh? No I'm not," Gary said blushing furiously, "Let's go." Plusle and Minin cackled in unison. Cail frowned.

"You know I REALLY don't know about those things," Cail said and received two mischievous grins.

Beluh looked up in the cloudless, purple-ing sky. "I wish we weren't in such a rush to save the Pokémon, I don't like being in Pyrite at the best of times, let alone at dusk."

"Agreed, but we _are_ in a hurry!" Amy said firmly.

"Yes dear, I know," Beluh nodded with a soft smile, "Lead the way young man," she directed at Cail.

"Uh-huh, you sure you want to come along? I usually manage to get a Cipher disguise when I go down there but you two may stand out even in that…"

"Disguise… how Duplica," Amy laughed.

"Duplica? Oh right, remember Saffron?"

"Yes, and Gabriel- oh," Amy had said his name and so the baby mutant Cubone burst from his Pokéball, yelling happily. Plusle and Minin jumped off of Gary and laughed with him and both trainers hurriedly recalled them.

"If that happens in The Under, we're all doomed, so try to avoid that," Cail said as they headed into the dark town. In front of the building it took Cail roughly 30 seconds to pick the lock and get them all inside just as complete darkness fell outdoors.

Inside it was lit though, and in the corner was an elevator with a woman in a Cipher uniform who was turned away from them, apparently listening to an I-Pokémon at full volume, bobbing her head to the beat.

"That's all we have to go against?" Eagun said, seeming disappointed.

"Actually, we don't even really have to go against this one," Cail grinned, "HEY! CELIA! TURN OFF THE TUNES FOR A SECOND!" the woman started and turned abruptly, but grinned when she saw Cail.

"Cail! Long time no see, what's with the entourage? You'll get caught this time you know."

"Well, I have to take the chance; this is a rescue mission, and a revenge mission." He glared at the elevator doors. "They got my Pokémon, my money, and Aims' friend."

Celia looked surprised. "I thought you admired a good thief?"

"Celia, that wasn't thievery, that was just… overpowering. I steal, I con, I don't beat people up and leave them tied up in a closet. So Cipher and Snag'em are going down." Celia raised an eyebrow.

"Wow, you seem pretty determined. In that case, any way I can help?" Celia asked.

"Cail, how do you know this Cipher Goon?" Eagun asked curiously.

"Eagun! That's Cail's friend! You can't call her a goon!" Amy gasped.

"Uh, actually that's my rank, Goon," Celia said with a raised eyebrow, "But yeah. Cail's my twin." There was a silence. "No really, we escaped The Under together. I joined Cipher at Goon level so I could guard, spy, and help let him in when he wanted to visit our old friends."

"Wow, um, so does that mean you'll help?" Gary asked.

"Course she will," Cail smirked, "Let's get going."

"Thank god, I hate this uniform; it'll be great to beat Cipher once and for all," Celia said with a sigh, "So you'll be wanting some uniforms?" she suggested, retrieved a stash of them from behind a panel on the wall.

150150

It was a short time later that the group had the Goon rank uniforms on and were in the elevator headed down. Cail said a group would actually be less suspicious; they could pose as a legitimate squadron without having to convince other people there that they belonged. Eagun agreed to use the higher rank uniform and lead the squad, even though Cail had to walk next to him and poke him in the side in the direction they needed to go next. On the way down he had mentioned that they were going to see a kid named Nett first, and Gary said that he'd spoken to Nett over a video phone while in Duking's house before. Nett had mentioned that he would do some hacking to find out anything he could about Snag'em, so it would be a good idea to stop by the Under kids' hide out.

In the city, they had a couple close calls, but Eagun was a good actor and managed to field all questions that were asked of him with 'WHAT BUSINESS IS IT OF YOURS?" answers. It was rather hilarious, but Amy kept her cool.

They managed to reach a smaller building that seemed like a tavern. Inside, Cail led them behind a curtain. No one bothered watching them go behind the curtain, the tavern was full of civilians who seemed too afraid of Cipher to even spare a glance their way. Behind the curtain, Celia tapped a wall panel and a keypad flipped out. She scanned her hand and typed a password into the pad and a set of stairs opened up. They headed down. Much more advanced then the bookcase panel in Duking's house.

Downstairs, a group of kids clobbered Cail and Celia when they came inside.

"CELIA! CAIL! Is it time? Are we going to finally beat them?" they asked.

"Yeah, we're going to beat them, so GET THE HELL OFF ME!" Cail snapped and they climbed off. He stood and took out a cigarette, looking pissed.

"What lovely children!" Beluh said happily.

"Okay, where's Nett?" Gary asked.

"I'm here," Nett said walking out of the shadows of another room. Amy did a quick headcount and figured there were about ten kids down there, all under the age of twelve. She wondered how they survived down here so long with Cipher running everything, especially when they were performing activities that could get them killed if they were discovered.

"Did you get any information on Snag'em?" Gary asked as Nett, who seemed roughly ten years old, approached.

"Yes actually, I did. The GPS coordinates to their base and a list of transactions. Apparently they handed over a Cipher escapee very recently."

"Jesse! Where did Cipher take him?" Amy asked frantically.

"He should be in the testing center in the TV station," Nett said carefully. He then handed Gary his list of Snag'em information and Gary thanked him. They were discussing tactics for attacking Cipher when the door burst open, salsa music filled the air, and the children screamed.

"Okay dahlings! Up against the wall now! You think we weren't listening in the elevator? We've been looking for these little hackers for months and you led us right to them, thank you!" Mirror B danced his way into the room looking gleeful.

"I never liked salsa music," Amy groaned.

"Same," Gary groaned as well and they released their Pokémon for battle. Isis, Socrates, Plusle, Minin, Gabriel, Pika and Beluh's Sceptile Margo faced an arsenal of Ludicolo, Houndour, Zubat, and one Shadow Pokémon, a Sudowudo.

"Alright! Double Ice Beam on Sudowudo!" Amy ordered. Isis and Gabriel blew the ice into the rock type and it flew backwards. Quickly grabbing Gary's Snag'em glove, she threw a ball to capture the aura encrusted Pokémon. She caught it. Gary stared.

"I thought you were against that!"

"Mirror B. deserves it for capturing Jesse!" Amy said darkly. Gary twitched.

"PLUSLE! MININ! THUNDERSHOCK!" battle waged a while, and with Beluh and Eagun helping, they managed to beat them back. They retreated though, so Cail and Celia knew that if they were to take out Cipher in The Under they had to do it fast. Leading the group of Under kids, they ran out of their hiding place, through the now empty tavern, and into the street, shouting for all citizens against Cipher to come into the street because the revolt was now.

That led to a good sized mob forming. In the commotion, it was a perfect time to go save Jesse if they could. Just then though, a huge TV screen lit up.

"Hello, welcome to The Under TV! It's me, your Venus, Lady Venus!" a beautiful woman in a long flowing gown appeared on the screen.

"Oh shit..." Celia groaned.

The woman continued, "It seems that a group of spies have gotten into our town and are trying to kidnap some of our lovely children! So be sure to turn these horrid people over to yours truly for punishment! Remember, I'm your Venus!" with a giggle the TV screen went back to advertisements.

"Oh… oh this is bad," one of the little girls, called Megg, whimpered.

"No, no we'll be fine, right Cail?" Amy asked.

"Erm… well… Lady Venus may be hot but she's evil. She's the one running The Under since the takeover," Cail explained, "And that announcement is not good for us at all."

"Then our priority should be to get the children to safety," Beluh said firmly.

"Yes dear," Eagun agreed sharply. Gary grinned.

"Yeah, let's go!"

"NO! I won't just leave Jesse! Look… Cail can help get the kids out with Beluh and Eagun. And Celia can help me and Gary try to find Cail's Pokémon and Jesse," Amy said and Gary frowned.

"Why is Celia with us and not Cail?"

Amy sighed. "Because we may have more doors that need to be opened and Celia is our best option. Mirror B. didn't see her face so she isn't under suspicion. We'll be less conspicuous like this, since we're going in deeper while you get out"

Eagun smiled. "You're a brave girl Amy. It'll be good to have you in the family one day."

Amy blushed hard. "I-I think that's thinking a little far ahead! Now, let's do this before it's too late!" the others nodded and took their leave. Amy and Gary pulled their masks down more firmly over their faces as they headed into the underground city.

150150

"So, from what you've told me…" Amy said as they walked the narrow street, passing straight by other Cipher cronies who didn't seem to think an intruder could possibly be wearing their uniform. "The most likely place they would've placed Jesse is under the Under Colosseum."

"Seems like it," Celia nodded, "Cail's Pokémon are probably there too, the subway's out of order right now so they couldn't have transported them to the Lab yet. But I doubt we have too long."

"Okay, I just want this over with," Gary grunted, "I hope those kids get out alright," he added as an afterthought.

"Me too, but we can't think about them right now," Amy hissed as they approached a platform. Celia had them stand in it while she placed a disk in a reader. They moved forward and she retrieved the disk as they arrived. The Coliseum stood before them. They hurried inside.

"Okay, we can try the stairway here," Celia said and they headed downstairs. They passed a couple rooms but nothing out of the ordinary. Then they reached a locked door. Celia punched a code into the keypad and they were in. Closing the door made the lights turn on. They were in a hallway of cells, not unlike the ones in the place Amy had been originally confined. The first had the door open. Inside were three Pokeballs.

"Cail can be happy now, I know those are his," Celia said, scooping them up. Amy was already down the hall though.

"Jesse? Can you hear me?" she whispered loudly without response. Her heartbeat quickening she started moving faster, peering into each cell hard, trying to define anything that was human shaped. But only at the last cell did she see her friend, he appeared unconscious.

"Jesse!" she hissed through the bars without response. "JESSE!" she rattled the bars and found the door swung open for her. In surprise she hurried inside. "Jesse?" then the door of the cell swung shut.

"Amy! It's a trap!" Gary yelled from out of sight.

"LET GO OF ME!" Celia's voice screamed. Sounds of struggle, Pokémon being called out. Amy went to Jesse's form, and discovered a dummy with ginger hair. Her mouth dropped open. She went to the bars and peered out.

"Amy! We-" Gary was trying to get passed the Ciphers blocking their path, including Mirror B, and Lady Venus herself.

"NO! GO BACK! J-Just find Jesse, and get Cail's Pokémon back to him. I have…" she slapped her forehead. "I have my own Pokémon. Go Selene," the Dragonair burst from its ball, blasted open the door of the cell, leapt at the Ciphers and attacked. As that distraction panned out well, Gary and Celia hurried off through another door and Amy recalled Selene, leaving the Ciphers unconscious.

"That's a strong Dragonair," Celia said in awe.

"You bet, she's saved my life more than once, she even helped save all of Kanto!" Amy giggled, thinking of Articuno and the Seafoam Islands as they ran down the random hallway they were now in.

"_Amy_?" came a voice form down the hall.

"JESSE!" Amy squealed and Gary let out a groan as Amy found Jesse tied up near some boxes. Quickly she helped him up.

"They moved me out of the cell and said that they were going to get you next, I was afraid… well…" Jesse began but Amy put her finger to his lips.

"No time for that now. Let's get out of here before we're totally screwed," Amy said and Gary growled as she pulled Jesse with them out the way they'd come… only to find the door closing.

"NO!" Celia screamed and made a dive, holding it open, but struggling with it. The three other managed to get out, passed the form of Mirror B and Lady Venus, and hurried out the door, up the stairs, through the Colosseum and toward a secret elevator Celia showed them to the surface. They went up, and ended up in the desert, just outside Pyrite, in some sort of quarry.

"What's this about?" Amy asked, picking over gravel.

"The Under was a mining town once a upon a time. But when the mine went dry, it sort of became a gambling town, and sort of blended into the background of Orre. Then Cipher took over," Celia explained as they headed back to Pyrite.

Jesse stumbled on a rock and sighed. "I hope you weren't in danger coming to save me, this was all my fault."

"Of course it's your fault! And drop Amy's hand already!" Gary snapped.

"Gary!" Amy gasped.

"I-I would but…" Jesse stammered and Celia sighed.

"Romantic conflict. Look, can you save it until we're all safe?" Celia growled as her PDA rang. She flipped it open and smiled. "Its Cail, they got out and are headed for Agate. I'll send them a text saying we'll meet them there as soon as we reach Gary's motorcycle."

"Right," Amy sighed.

"Um… so should I let go?" Jesse asked but no one was listening so he just held on to Amy's hand as the four walked back to Pyrite. Celia and Jesse crammed into the sidecar and Gary and Amy got on the seat as they prepared to head back to Agate.

_((Joyful Note: I'm not... dead yet... still going... somewhere. I've just become such a fan of Hetalia, last time I saw Pokemon was an ancient age ago but... still alive... sorry...))_


	30. Cails Challenge

**Hidden in Shadows Part 8~ Cail's Challenge**

In Agate, everyone was very relieved to see each other and Amy wasted no time making a suggestion.

"Jesse, I think you should get out of the region. I have to stay and save my dad," Gary made a garbled noise as Amy went on, "But you should go. I really don't want you to be put in danger again; we should've done this from the start…"

Jesse frowned. "I know you just want to protect me Amy but… I don't want to just leave with this unfinished. I mean, sure I'm a burden but… I might have some service I can assist with."

"And what's THAT supposed to mean?" Gary demanded, looking pissed, "Amy just told you to leave for your own protection so just _go_, what's so hard about that?"

"Well, I think I can answer that one," Cail sighed, coming into the room, rubbing his forehead with a frown of his own, "I don't want to alarm you guys or anything but… Cipher has shut down pretty much every way out of the region."

"What? How's that even possible?" Gary yelped. Eagun, Beluh and Celia came in as well.

"Evidently, Cipher seems to have gotten much more powerful then we'd anticipated," Eagun said sadly, "I had no idea it was so serious, but they've apparently managed to shut down both the sea and air ports in Gateon and have blocks along the perimeter of the desert, not that it's recommended to cross any stretch of desert besides the routes between towns."

"Yeah, and Selene couldn't make that journey under the sun like this," Amy sighed, thinking, "Oh, how do you know this anyway?"

"It was in the last email Celia got before Cipher erased her from the mailing list," Cail sighed, "And, according to Nett's satellite images, it seems to be accurate."

"Then we only have one option, stopping Cipher once and for all," Celia said point blank, "We just need to figure out how to do it.

"Actually, I've been working on that," Nett entered now, flanked by Megg and Bitt, "But it's going to take some time. Still, our best bet is discovering how to purify Shadow Pokémon. That is Cipher's major plan, to use Shadow Pokémon in world domination. Well, if we know how to cure Shadow Pokémon then we can save the world. If we can't, even with Cipher defeated their plan will still go on as long as there are Shadow Pokémon."

"That's true," Beluh nodded, "So here's my plan. The children can stay here with myself and Eagun and work on curing Shadow Pokémon. We'll work on getting back in contact with Prof. Oak on a secure line as the rest of you work on rescuing Amy's father. You have the co-ordinates to the Snag'em Base now correct?"

"We do. Okay, that plan sounds good," Amy nodded, "So Jesse will stay here as well then?"

"No I- I want to go with you," Jesse said firmly, "I know I can't see, but I want to try, if you're going to Snag'em…" he sighed. "I may as well say this, when Snag'em kidnapped me this last time, I heard… well I _think_ I heard, um, one of my Pokémon. No... I'm sure it was. Actually, Cail probably saw him. Uh, he was… the…"

Cail raised an eyebrow, "Um… oh hang on, was it that big red and brown dog thing?"

"Yeah, that's Entie."

"ENTIE?" everyone stared at Jesse.

"Uh, yeah… well actually he isn't exactly MINE per say, but he was travelling with me… um… yeah so..."

"But, you know, isn't that a legendary Pokémon?" Gary pointed out, eyes wide and gaping.

"Um, well, yes," Jesse said with a sigh, "And now it's evil. So if you're going in there maybe… maybe I can reason with him"

"But I thought you said once a Pokémon has been turned into a Shadow Pokémon they lose all their previous memories?" Cail pointed out.

"Yes, but if a Shadow aura can be eased, then maybe some memories can return. If anybody can allow that to happen I think it would be me, and although Selene might be able to face Entie there isn't a guarantee, especially if Snag'em has my other Pokémon too… though I doubt Cipher would allow one member, or even one division to have all of them."

"Actually, I heard that there was an Entie being used at the Battle Tower," Celia piped up.

"What?" Nett blinked.

"Yeah, apparently the first level got a new leader and he's been using an Entie," Celia revealed, "I guess he's probably from Snag'em then, we're closer to the Battle Tower so do you want to try stopping by there first?"

"Stop by... Battle Tower-…" Gary seemed to struggle with himself. On the one hand, he did not want to dawdle getting to the Snag'em base. On the other hand, this was a BATTLE Tower, and furthermore, this was an opportunity to see a legendary Pokémon.

"Well… what do you want to do Jesse?" Amy asked, wanting to go straight to her father, but on the other hand if they managed to rescue Jesse's Entie it was possible the boy would decide to go back to Agate so that he wouldn't be in more danger.

"Well… Entie would probably be a lot of help rescuing Wes Tanner, even if he is a Shadow Pokémon," Jesse said slowly.

"Alright, Battle Tower it is then!" Celia grinned and Cail sighed.

"Okay, so let's go then. Eagun, can I borrow you're motorcycle?"

"Certainly young man! You kids just be careful!" Eagun merrily replied.

"We'll try that," Amy said with a smirk, knowing this was the furthest thing from being careful. Still though. This was fully necessary. So then, the group of Gary, Amy, Jesse, Celia and Cail headed out to the motorcycles while Nett, the Kids Grid gang, Eagun and Beluh stayed to work on how Shadow Pokémon might be purified.

An hour later the five kids pulled up in front of the Battle Tower. Jesse got out of the side car with a little assistance and shivered.

"I feel him… I feel Raiku…" Jesse breathed.

"Feel him? Really?" Celia said, blowing a bubble in the mint gum she was chewing. Cail breathed in from his cigarette.

"I thought we were getting that Entie thing... oh well," Cail shrugged, "So are we going in or what?"

"Oh, we're going," Gary said marching up to the door. As he went though, there were two flashes of light and Plusle and Minin dashed out ahead of him, cackling wildly.

"Okay what the hell? Get back here!" Gary growled, running after them.

"Gary!" Amy called and groaned, taking off after him.

"A-Amy?" Jesse blinked his sightless eyes.

"Come on kid," Celia sighed, putting a hand on his shoulder and directing him toward the doors, Cail following, looking bored.

Inside all seemed pretty normal, but Jesse insisted that Raiku (because apparently he also had 'befriended' this mythical beast as well) was being used here. They approached the front desk where a woman was reading a magazine, an Abra dozing by her side.

"Um, excuse me? Ms… um- hello?" Amy asked, tapping the desk. The lady looked up.

"Oh, hello there! Would you like to make a challenge?" she asked, putting down her magazine.

"Oh, uh, yes! My friends and I would-"

"Oh, I'm sorry Miss, but only one challenger is allowed up at a time," the receptionist said with an apologetic smile.

"Huh? Why?" Gary asked confused.

"Because the Battle Tower fields are mostly supported by giant rotating fans over large chasms, each platform can only support the weight of two trainers and four Pokémon. Also, Wailords and Snorlaxes are not permitted for obvious reasons," the receptionist explained.

"Right… well then, who should go up?" Gary asked the group.

"Well… I DID come in second in the Indigo League," Amy said glancing around as if expecting someone to challenge the fact.

"Yeah, well you're also on Cipher's Most Wanted list," Celia pointed out and Amy frowned.

"Well, I think I should go! I was still IN the Indigo League anyway!" Gary pointed out.

"Yes, Celia, Cail and myself will wait here with Amy while you go up and," Jesse was speaking but Gary cut him off.

"STAY WITH AMY HUH? Well take this ginger boy, I'm not going anywhere!" Gary snapped.

"B-but Gary, if not you or me, then who else will do it?" Amy asked, wondering what bug pokemon had crawled into his underwear and bit him, "I mean… it'd have to be Celia or Cail obviously but…"

"Um… I'm actually not that great with Pokémon," Celia admitted, "Actually, I only have two."

Everyone turned to Cail who sighed, stabbing out his cigarette.

"Alright. I'll go. But I know I'm going to regret it," he groaned.

"Okay… oh hey!" Amy stripped off her Snag'em machine, "Take this so you can get Raiku back, given the chance."

"Okay… uh, what does a Rake-oo look like?" Cail asked and everyone tipped over a little. How could anyone not know what a legend like Raiku looked like?

"H-he looks like this" Amy laughed a little, showing him a picture in her Pokedex.

"Alright," He rolled his eyes and registered with the receptionist. After a round of wishes for good luck, he went through the doors and out of sight.

"So, you think he'll get up there alright?" Amy asked and Celia smiled.

"He's a good trainer. He just… well when he has warning for a battle he doesn't battle in the traditional way."

"Then… how does he fight?" Gary asked, cocking his head to one side.

A FEW MINUTES LATER

"What are you doing?" the first trainer on the battle tower asked, confused as Cail pulled out an I-Pokémon with speakers and set it on some hip-hop music. He then turned to his opponent and smiled.

"Getting ready to beat you," he said, and threw his two Pokeballs. Staryu and Porygon appeared in a flash of light. He was saving Floatzel for later, and he'd also managed to borrow Socrates and Isis from Gary and Amy, along with Celia's Gligar. By _borrow_ here we mean he sort of took them with intent to return them afterwards, hopefully with them not realizing. It was just habit, he couldn't be bothered asking.

The opponent sent out a Teddiursa and a Ledyba. Cail grinned.

"Ledyba, Comet Punch on Porygon! Teddiursa, Bite on Staryu!"

"DODGE!" Cail called and like dancing to the beat of the music, his Pokémon moved quickly from each attack. As he did, he couldn't help but bounce on the balls of his feet himself, making a few dance moves of his own. Don't get him wrong. Its true most trainers would look rather dorky battling like this. However, in Cail's street clothes, cigarette in one hand, sunglasses glinting in the sunlight and mischievous smile on his lips, he looked pretty damn cool.

"That is really GAY you know that?" the opposing trainer said after moment.

Cail twitched. "Oh yeah? You're a thirty year old man with a pink shirt, a teddy bear and a ladybug. Who's gay here?"

"Hey, shut up! There's nothing wrong with being gay anyway!" the man shouted, and proceeded to order another round of attacks that were easily dodged.

"Okay, Tri Attack on the lady bug, and Rapid Spin on the teddy bear," Cail ordered. Both the little Pokémon went down in one hit. Cail stared. "Dude, are you serious? What are those things, level five?"

"… yes." He then recalled his Pokémon and ran off crying. Cail raised an eyebrow. This might be easier then he thought.

MEANWHILE AT THE BASE OF THE TOWER

"Dance steps huh? Weird," Gary said with raised eyebrows.

"Yep, back in our youth he used to break dance in the Under for change. Sponsored many candy runs Cail did…" Celia reminisced.

"That sounds cool," Amy smiled. She was sitting next to Gary and, because she knew Gary was getting seriously stressed, she allowed him to hold his arm around her shoulders protectively as Jesse occupied the seat next to Celia.

Suddenly, it seemed Gary had reached into his pocket, and felt only five Pokeballs. His eyes widened and he quickly retracted his arm from Amy's shoulder and began digging through his pockets with both hands. "I'm missing one of my Pokeballs!"

Amy cocked her head to one side and curiously checked her own pockets, eyes widening as well. "Hey… me too!"

"Hang on…" Celia frowned and reached into her pocket as well and withdrawing one Pokeball. "Urg, he took Gligar. It has to have been Cail. Sorry guys, he's a great pick pocket and likes to show off. He should've asked but he'll definitely return them. He never _permanently_ steals Pokémon."

"Hey… my wallet's missing too!" Gary blinked.

"Oh… well that he erm… _probably_ wasn't thinking when he took that. Force of habit. Just ask for it when he gets back."

"Bastard…" Gary grunted and Amy giggled a little.

"Yeah… but seriously, he only has three Pokémon of his own. He could probably use the help of our Pokémon," Amy pointed out. She looked over at Jesse, who'd been quiet for a while now.

"A-are you okay Jesse?" she asked concerned.

"It's just… Raiku's energy is so tainted, it's disconcerting." He shook his head. "When a human has a bond with a legendary Pokémon, they become very attuned to its aura. With it so dark, I feel dark too." The red head sighed.

"Well, I'm sure Cail can get it back from whatever Cipher member is at the end of level one, and who knows? Maybe Nett will have a break through made by then!"

"I hope so," Jesse sighed once again, head turning towards the doorway Cail had disappeared through.

As it turned out, level one was full of live-with-their-mother bottom-of-the-barrel trainers whose Pokémon didn't appear to exceed level ten. Cail easily blew through them, often with one hit apiece. In fact, he found it was starting to get boring and for the last few battles he wasn't even bothering with his music anymore. This was barely battling.

At last he reached the new head of Level One and immediately decided to get out his I-Pokémon again. This guy was BIG. Muscular, with dark blood red hair jutting out of his head like flames and war paint on his face. Cail usually avoided these sort of trainers if he could help it, but if he came back now Celia would probably murder him… better this guy's wrath then hers.

"Prepare to lose, puny man!" the muscle man roared, and Cail twitched. The guy released two Pokémon, a Machoke and a Dunsparce.

Cail nodded when the Machoke appeared but Dunsparce made him raise an eyebrow. Still, this was level one. Even if this guy was cheating or something with higher level Pokémon, he couldn't be too awesome without raising suspicion…

"Alright, go Porygon, Staryu!" Cail released his Pokémon, and flipped on his music. Once again his opponent stared at him, but Cail wasn't one to worry about that.

Battle commenced. Turns out that the muscle head was better than one would think. Dunsparce was fairly easily dispatched of, but Machoke landed some decent hits before going down, and by that point meat-head had sent out a Vibrath as well and Cail was not expecting it to shoot Dragon breath at him. So, to his surprise, he hit Porygon twice. One hit turned Porygon into a Dragon type, weakening it to Dragon moves and the second taking him out of the battle. Vibrath was fast; even dance steps couldn't seem to deter it.

"Alright, a decent fight for a change. Interesting," Cail grinned and this time released his sister's Gligar. He wanted to save Floatzel for later. Luckily, he'd 'borrowed' Gligar so often he knew its fight style as well as he did the styles of his own Pokémon. "Gligar, Dig under Machoke! Staryu, Swift!"

Swift hit both Pokémon, and never misses so minor damage was done to both opponents as Gligar furiously burrowed down.

"Dragon Breath! Karate Chop!" the meat head ordered and his Pokémon leapt into action at Staryu. After an intense thrashing, the star-shape Pokémon fell to the ground, the jewel set in its middle blinking furiously. Cail recalled the fainted Pokémon and now sent out his Floatzel. He wanted to sort of avoid using Gary and Amy's Pokémon if he could avoid it, maybe just as finishers. He didn't know them that well.

Gligar took out Machoke with Dig and the meat head now sent out Nidorino. Though Floatzel sent that Pokémon into heavy damage, Nidorino's Take Down (which took itself out) coupled with Vibrath's Dragon breath once again (doesn't it know any other attacks?) managed to take out Gligar. Cail blinked in surprise. Gligar rarely went down. Now he had to pick from Gary and Amy's Pokémon. He picked Amy's, remembering vaguely that Ice types were good against dragon types. He hoped Dragon breath meant that Vibrath was actually a dragon type…

"Go, uh… Isis right?" Cail questioned as the ice Eevee evolution appeared, looked at Cail, and seemed to roll its eyes. Cail wasn't sure what that was about, but she appeared to be ready to fight the meat head anyway. "Uh… crap. Um, use… Ice... something on bug boy?" he said, pointing at Vibrath hopefully. Isis groaned, but complied with an Ice Beam. Vibrath tried to dodge but Isis chased it down until one of its wings caught the ice and it fell to the ground. From there, Floatzel's Slam took it out easily. Finally, Raiku had to be chased out.

"Alright, bet you think you're tough little man? Well now face my Ultimate Shadow Pokémon!" the meat head through his final Pokeball and out appeared the Pokémon Cail had seen in the Pokedex, Raiku.

"He's getting ready to battle now…" Jesse whispered, unnoticed.

"Ready to lose punk?" the meat head laughed and Cail rolled his eyes.

"Yeah. Sure I am buddy," Cail snorted, "Floatzel, Hydro Pump."

"Raiku! Thunderbolt!" the meat head roared and the electric type sizzled Floatzel, leaving it steaming on the surface of the arena. Cail froze in shock. He thought Shadow Pokémon only knew Shadow Rush! Maybe these were special, because they were legendary? Arceus damn... Without any other choice, Cail sent out Gary's Umbreon. He couldn't remember its nickname, but he knew what Pokémon it was anyway.

"Isis, Umbreon, uh, you usually double battle together right? So… um… what attacks do you know? Wait, Amy said you know Roll Out, both of you use Roll Out on Raiku!" Cail ordered, remembering Amy's long story about her Pokémon journey from before. He remembered that part about their first gym battle because it sounded cool at the time.

Isis and Umbreon looked at each other. They hadn't used Roll Out in quite a long time, did they still remember how? Isis knew it had to do with defence curl and agility… So she used those attacks and soon was rolling as before, if with a bit more difficultly. It was difficult to manoeuvre in this form. Umbreon had an easier time of it.

Their only problem was… aim.

"HEY! Watch it!" Cail yelled, dodging away from the rolling Pokémon as they careened around the platform, "And watch the side too!"

"Enough of this! Use Shadow Rush!" the Cipher meat head ordered and Raiku charged… just as Socrates and Isis managed to change direction. Full contact.

"YES!" Cail grinned, pulling out a cigarette as Raiku fell back. Taking a drag, he grabbed a Pokeball with the Snag Machine and threw it. The Raiku dazedly disappeared within and the ball shook rapidly. Luckily, Cail wasn't an idiot and used an Ultra Ball he'd found last time he was down in the Under. The Raiku was caught. Thanks be to Arceus.

"Alright, so do I get some cash now or wh- hey!" Cail growled as the muscle head lurched for him. He dodged aside with one of his break dance moves and the Cipher Executive careened down over the side of the platform, down to the ground. He landed with a sickening thud.

Isis and Socrates stared, and then looked up at Cail.

"Shit… I think we should get out if here," Cail said and recalled the two Pokémon before heading for the stairs.

"Excuse me, sir? Wait a moment!" Cail turned and saw a man in a long off-white coat with spiked hair smiling at him, "I'm the true leader of the arena, I was being held captive in the Rest House by Cipher, but the Goons ran off when their leader took the dive off the edge. I'm impressed, and I would like to give you something before you go!"

Cail raised an eyebrow, but walked back to the man.

Back downstairs, Jesse had relaxed a short while ago and when Cail came in everyone ran over to him.

"OKAY WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA STEALING MY WALLET YOU-"

"Can we please get our Pokémon back now Cail…?" Amy cut Gary off, looking hopeful.

"Cail, you better have won or I am SO going to kill you!" Gary seethed.

"Hey! Calm down! Here's your Pokémon back, and yeah I won," Cail sighed, handing back the Pokémon he'd 'borrowed' earlier. He seemed confused about the wallet at first and then checked his pockets. Pulling it out, he seemed surprised. "Huh, how'd that get there?" he shrugged and handed it back to a disgruntled Gary.

"So… you found Raiku?" Jesse asked and Cail nodded, smirking a little as he pulled out the Ultra Ball. Jesse reached for it at first, then drew back quickly.

"I… I don't think I can…"

"Jesse, if anyone can handle Raiku it's you!" Amy smiled. "Don't worry about the Aura, Raiku's still in there somewhere, you just have to find him!" Amy said, putting her hand on Jesse's shoulder encouragingly. Jesse smiled.

"You're right. Thank you Amy" he reached for the ball, sensing its position due to the aura presumably. He held it carefully. They all looked at each other.

"So…. Mystery lab now right? Rescue mission?" Celia said after a moment.

"Oh yeah!" Cail nodded and grinned, "After this little warm up I'm ready for anything… but I have to get my Pokémon healed first."

"Yes, of course." Jesse nodded, face still towards the ball, so it didn't appear that he was actually listening.

Cail headed for the Pokémon rest station in the corner while Celia and Gary went over Nett's co-ordinates to the mystery lab. Amy stayed near Jesse.

"Jesse… how is it you're bonded with legendary Pokémon?" Amy asked.

Jesse smiled a little "I really shouldn't tell you… but I think you're trustworthy. You can't tell anyone else though."

"My lips are sealed," Amy said, intensely interested now.

"Well… do you know the legends about Sinnoh? How it was the first land to have pokemon… all those legends?" Amy responded positively, she'd heard the tales. "Well, we have a lot of legendary Pokemon there, perhaps because the legends are true. And I'm one of the ones that are supposed to guard them, the same as most of my family. However, apart from Orre here, most lands have some legendary Pokemon, so I was sent to Johto to care for the legendaries there. But then Cipher came and captured the legendary beasts as well Ho-oh. When I left Lugia was still alright, but I have no way of knowing if that's still the case. I had to come here to save them, but then I myself was captured when it was revealed I could see the Shadow auras. In other words, I've failed miserably. That's why I have to stay, I can't run now. To leave Orre when my legendary wards are here would the worst shame possible. I'd never be able to show my face to most of my family again," Jesse turned away and Amy stared.

"Really? That's why?" Amy said quietly, looking at the back of Jesse's head. "Well… I can understand that. Alright. I won't try to get you to leave anymore. We'll save the legendaries, and all shadow Pokémon! Don't worry!" Amy smiled and Jesse laughed bit.

"If you say so."

"I know so! So never fear, alright?" Amy grinned "I'll do whatever it takes to help you out!"

Then Jesse turned, and flung his arms around Amy's neck from nowhere. "Thank you Amy! Thank you so much... you've done so much for me, I don't know how I'll ever repay you!"

"Oh, uh, no problem" Amy blushed, surprised by this sudden display of gratitude.

Of course then Gary looked over at them and noticed this situation, got pissed, and yanked Amy out of Jesse's grip. Amy hit him and Jesse apologized to Gary. Celia rolled her eyes. Cail came back, questioned why Gary was mad, Celia explained, and Cail rolled his eyes. The group then trekked out to the motorcycles and revved the engines, ready for the mystery lab, and hopefully ready for any obstacles that stood in their way.

_((Joyful Note: Yes, I edited another chapter. Sorry but this is such an old Fanfiction for me now... phht... I can't see me doing more than finishing editing the chapters I have and finishing up the Orre story arc. I just don't think I'll ever write more than that, so at this end of this Orre arc you'll have to be satisfied. I'm sorry.))_


	31. Plusle and Minin's Adventure

**Hidden In Shadows Part 9~ Plusle And Minin's Excellent Adventure**

Thanks to Nett's GPS map, they reached the Mystery Cipher Lab without much trouble. But they encountered a slight snag when they got there, and that does not refer to the team of that name.

"Ooh. Electricity. That's just great," Celia muttered as they looked at the electrified fence that surrounded the lab. They knew it was electrified because there was a handy little sign posted displaying a tiny Pokémon trainer getting fried to a crisp. And there was an electrical buzzing noise, which was also something of a tip off.

"So... what now?" Amy asked as the group stood idly in the desert.

"Um..." Cail seemed to be thinking.

"We could get on Selene and see if we can cross the border out of Orre that way?" Gary suggested hopefully, to be met by Amy's glare "Well, come on! How're we supposed to get over this without attracting attention? We-"

"Erm, I think I may have an idea," Jesse said hesitantly and Amy turned happily towards him.

"You do? What?" she asked to Gary's huff of disgust. She rolled her eyes and playfully batted his shoulder, to which he blushed and bit and looked away.

Jesse clearly his throat a little. "Well obviously I can't see it but, couldn't Plusle and Minin withstand the electricity? Perhaps you could send them inside to get a key or something for the front door? There must be a door"

"Yeah, it's over here," Cail nodded in the direction of what looked like a sliding panel of cement next to a slot. "It uses a card key by the looks of things." He pulled out a cigarette and rolled it in his fingers a moment before lighting it.

Celia smiled. "Sounds like a plan, Jesse. Okay, Gary, get out the rodents."

"Uh, sure." Gary frowned and released the Plusle and Minin who appeared with cries of slightly evil sounding delight.

"Plu Plus!"

"Mi Min!"

"Uh, yeah." Gary shifted uneasily. Amy stepped forward with a small frown of her own.

"Right, so, Plusle? Minin?" the electric rodents turned to her. "Can you guys hop the fence and get a card key for the front door, without getting caught?"

"PLUSLE!"

"MININ!"

They saluted and nodded firmly.

"Because you've been captured before by Cipher according to Duking..." Amy reminded them carefully. They gave identical indignant glares. "Alright then, go!" Amy ordered and at once the two scampered up the fence, tiny body coursing with electricity as they launched themselves over the top.

"Do you think they'll be okay?" Jesse asked, scratching his arm.

"Do you think they'll die a horrible death?" Gary asked with an edge of hopefulness. They were both annoying and slightly creepy at times.

"I'm betting they'll join Cipher," Celia offered, since she had also noticed their air of malevolence.

"I'm betting they'll _run_ Cipher. If they don't already," Cail snorted.

"Hey! Shut up! They're our only chance right now!" Amy snapped. Then she paused. "Wait... what if Cipher has camera out here?" They all looked around.

"Then... we're fracked," Cail sighed.

"Definitely Fracked," Celia nodded.

"Fracked?" Jesse asked in confusion.

"Heh heh, I loved Battle Star Deoxyica," Gary smiled and Amy rolled her eyes before she looked worriedly at the walls beyond the electrified fence.

888

"Plus Plus Plus!" Plusle whispered to Minin.

"Min Min!" his blue tipped partner replied and they jumped to the ground inside the lab compound, quickly running towards the building. For the benefit of the readers, the remainder of the Plusle/Minin journey will be through the ears of the Pokémon, so you can understand what they say.

"Minin!" Plusle called Minin's name to indicate that he follow him up to an air vent on the building, located about 10 feet from the main gate.

"Plusle!" Minin gasped his friend's name as he slipped on the wall, to be caught at the last second by Plusle grabbing his paw and pulling him up.

"Minin," Plusle sighed in exasperation and relief as he ruffled the fur on Minin's head. He gave him a look that clearly told Minin not to scare his partner like that. Minin sighed back and hugged Plusle, speaking volumes in that action of his appreciation of having such a good friend. Then they ran through the vent.

They scrambled through the tin ducts, footsteps echoing for several minutes before they found another grate. Gazing down from it they registered that they were in a bathroom, and by the crude pictures of boobs all over the stall walls, they had to assume it was the male bathroom.

"Minin!" Plusle whispered to turn his friend's attention to the screws around the grate. Minin saluted and nodded before shoving his tail into the screw and flipping himself so he balanced on it, looking expectant. Plusle grabbed Minin's feet and spun him very fast over the screw, making him dizzy but also getting the screw loose. They removed it and moved to the next one. By the time the grate fell and clattered to the floor, Minin had to rest a moment for the room to stop spinning. Plusle gazed down into the bathroom while Minin worked on getting back to his senses.

"P-Plusle..." Minin groaned, touching his partner's shoulder to let him know he was okay to keep going. Plusle nodded back and the two jumped from the grate to the floor. Plusle landed on his feet alright but Minin landed in a puddle of… what we will hope is water and slipped, falling on his rear. He moaned at that but Plusle quieted him. The two hurried out of the bathroom and into the hall.

888

Outside, the human crew was waiting impatiently for the return of their rodent... companions.

"Someone's going to see us out here," Cail muttered, smoke billowing softly from his mouth as he did so.

"Well you'd think if they had cameras they'd be out here by now," Amy pointed out.

"Unless they're trying to catch us by surprise," Celia suggested, to a set of worried looks. Gary didn't look worried though, he just looked pissed.

"Well you all could have listened to me and we might've been OUT of this stupid desert region by now! But nooooo, we have to save the Pokémon! We have to save your father! What-"

"He's my FATHER Gary!" Amy snapped angrily.

"Well there's _POLICE_ that deal with kidnappings! Not teenagers!" Gary growled.

"Please, don't argue," Jesse muttered, "Look, we're here now. Plusle and Minin are inside, we can't change that. So just stay and see how it goes."

"Yeah, but it's frikken boiling out here!" Gary raged.

"Oh, I can fix that!" Amy smiled and threw a Pokeball, releasing Isis. "Use Blizzard!" she ordered.

"Glace!" Isis nodded and a shower of freezing cold snow shot out of her mouth… and immediately evaporated. "GLAAAAACE?" Isis gasped in shock.

"Geez," Cail shook his head and stabbed out his cigarette, "I didn't think it was that damn hot."

"Maybe it's not," Celia said carefully, walking over to where the snow had evaporated. When she entered the space however she immediately jumped back "OW!"

"What is it?" Amy asked, startled.

"The air here is way hotter than around it," Celia explained, wincing.

"Really? How is that possible?" Gary asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I don't know," Celia shook her head, "Not a clue."

888

Back inside, Plusle and Minin were making good progress. They'd already tackled, knocked unconscious and tied up two Cipher Lab Technicians. They quickly donned their clothes and grabbed their key cards. They then looked at each other.

"Plu- Plusle…" Minin giggled as he looked at his companion. With the clothes on… well basically they were just sticking out of the neck hole. With really big glasses. Plusle hadn't seemed to notice until his partner laughed and then looking down he realised that this wasn't going to work. After all, they could barely see out of these glasses! They'd bump into things! Laughing at his brief case of stupidity he started taking off his glasses when the door suddenly opened, casting light over the two rodent Pokémon, if not on their captives. The two gasped and looked wide eyed up, over top of their too big glasses at another lab technician looming over them, too shocked to shock the newcomer.

He looked down and glared. "Just what do you two think you're doing?"

"My-" Minin started, about to say something to the extent of 'My partner and I were just conducting experiments on how shadow Pokémon would fair in the dark' but he didn't get further than a mere 'My' before the lab tech cut in.

"Yeah yeah, there's a meeting going on you know! Get down to sub-level 3 pronto!" the technician snapped and turned on his heel away. Plusle and Minin looked at each other. With a smirk and nod they followed the lab tech, lab coats dragging behind them. A meeting? They had to sit in on this...

888

"I-I can't believe it! It's like there's some kind of hot air vent all the way around the building!" Celia gasped, coming back around from the other side of the building she'd just circled. "Its better then a moat… no luck with getting over it?" she asked Amy. Avion was panting at her feet after trying to get over top of where the heat reached. No avail there.

"I don't get it, how'd we get over the first time?" Amy asked in confusion. "How could artificial heating get like this?"

"Well…" Jesse said slowly, "I think Entie could make lava that hot. Under the ground, in some sort of river…"

"But that doesn't explain how we got over the first time," Cail said with a scowl.

"Don't you guys get it? It's a trap!" Gary snapped, "They have Suicune too right? So they used him to cool their lava moat until we got this close, then they heated it up again so we'd be trapped out here for however long they want, maybe until we're so damn hot we pass out!"

"I hate to say it but... that seems kinda… well it sounds weird but plausible enough I guess..." Amy sighed, "Maybe we can cool a path through it?"

"Maybe… but Isis' Blizzard evaporated instantly," Celia pointed out.

"Yes, if it is Entie's lava, only another legendary Pokémon, one of ice or water can possible cool it off," Jesse said dishearteningly.

"Well, that sounds hopeful," Cail said sarcastically.

"I wish we could call up Articuno right about now," Amy sighed.

"Yeah, this place could use a sheet of ice," Gary groaned. They all fell silent. It was really hot out. And there wasn't even any shade.

"We should probably conserve energy or something…" Celia sighed. "And hey, maybe Isis can use Blizzard inside the ring of fire?"

"Oh, hey yeah maybe, "Amy nodded and Isis smiled and let loose another Blizzard over her companions. They sighed in relief.

"Oh yeah baby, that's goooood….." Celia sighed, stretching in the cool air. So, that was one problem taken care of.

888

Plusle and Minin sat beside each other at a long table in the meeting hall among many other humans in lab coats. At one end of the table was a giant TV screen. It turned on and all idle chatter stopped as attention riveted on the screen… just like every time a TV goes on around people who study Pokémon. They were not disappointed as on the screen came an image of a Houndoom. That of course was simply a ploy to get attention of course and the image soon changed to the image of a man with really, REALLY weird hair. This was like… like… like Sepheroth level weird. I mean, he may as well have come out of Yu-Gi-Oh for crying out loud!

"Evice?" came a murmur throughout the room.

"Yes, Evice has decided to speak to you lowly scientists so shut up and pay attention!" A snap came from beside the TV. Another lab coat man was speaking.

"Sorry Ein," muttered a few of the lesser scientists. Plusle and Minin put on very serious faces.

"As you should be aware by now, we have currently five teenage Pokemon trainers outside the lab, trapped within the lava ring. Two of them are known Shadow Sighters, but we have more information on them that will be presented by Ein in a moment. I simply want to make things perfectly clear. The Shadow Sighting trainers and their companions are not to be harmed physically. If there must be torturing done, do it to their Pokémon. I myself will be paying a visit tomorrow evening to see the captives. I trust they'll remain in your possession that long. I return you to Ein," the screen went blank.

"OH MY GOD ARE YOU SERIOUSLY?" came a yell from the back of the room. It was quickly joined by much more excitement. Apparently Evice visiting was big news.

"Yes, yes, now calm down and I'll explain the trainers that are currently outside." Ein pulled up the files on the TV screen now. Amy's pictured filled the screen "This is Amy Tanner. Second place champion of the Indigo League despite only training for about a year. She's 17 years old and a known Shadow Sighter. She is the daughter of the infamous rogue Snag'em member Wes Tanner and former Cipher scientist Rui Devante. Some of the more senior members of Cipher remember them well. Rui is confirmed dead and Wes is currently held in the Snag'em base. Amy herself holds a full team of Pokémon, including a Glaceon and Dragonair. She was under custody in Pyrite Town but escaped with another Shadow Sighter."

The screen changed to an image of Jesse. "Jesse Hutch. He is the second confirmed Shadow Sighter. We don't know a lot about him other than that he is the cousin of Pre-Gym leader Justy from the Sinnoh region and has some affiliation with the three legendary beasts. He has been rendered blind and has no Pokémon with him."

The screen changed to Gary. "Gary Oak, grandson of Prof. Oak of Pallet Town, Kanto region. He appears to be Amy's boyfriend and has a Snag Machine as well as several Shadow Pokémon under his control."

Celia appeared on the screen. "This is Celia Rivers. She was with Cipher at Goon level working as a guard to the Under but turned against us. Her twin brother Cail," the picture changed, "Assisted in the escape of the Shadow Sighters. He holds four Pokemon total."

Plusle and Minin raised their eyebrows as their own pictures appeared on the screen.

"Finally, Plusle and Minin. Duking's." A collective shudder ran through the room and Plusle and Minin fought smirks. "We knew we might have to face these two again. They don't seem to be outside, but remember, they are masters of disguise. We managed to capture one years ago but after he was rescued... we all know the revenge they had against us." Nods and murmurs of agreement filled the room.

"HEY! HEY LET US IN!" A yell came from outside the door. The doors were opened and two men came in, stripped to their underwear. "PLUSLE AND MININ! THEY'RE HERE!"

"I knew it! Mark didn't seem like himself today!" one woman yelled and punched the man seated next to her.

"SHIRLEY! IT'S ME I SWEAR!" he cried, rubbing his nose.

"Plusle?" Minin whispered to an agreeing nod and they quickly vanished under the table in the confusion.

"No, no that's them there!" one of the naked men yelled, pointing at the escaping rodents. They gasped, jumped out of their lab coats and made a run for it, followed quickly by a hoard of angry (and slightly panicking) scientists. They dodged and ducked as those in scientists fell over themselves to grab them. Soon the rodents were laughing wildly.

A deep growl and roar suddenly came from in front of them and a freezing breeze flew over the two. They soon were, literally, frozen in place.

"And that is how you capture a Pokémon," Ein smirked, recalling the shadow Suicune and collecting the ice block where Plusle and Minin were trapped inside.

888

"Hey, the door's opening!" Celia said suddenly pointing from where they were building a snowman. Isis groaned and fell over, tired from all the Blizzard use.

"Oops, sorry Isis!" Amy gasped, recalling her Pokémon. They door of the Mystery lab was opening indeed… and many Cipher Scientists were coming out. And each had a Shadow Pokémon.

"Uh-oh," Amy said softly.

"I-I feel Suicune!" Jesse gasped.

"NO SHIT SHERLOCK, HE'S RIGHT THERE!" Gary yelled as the blue Pokémon stood beside what appeared to be the lead scientist.

"GARY! He can't see him!" Amy snapped in irritation. Gary was so insensitive!

"Blizzard," Ein ordered.

And so ended any possible plans of escape via battling.

_((... yep. Still alive. ... Nothing else to say really.))_


	32. Kidnapped Again

**Hidden In Shadows Part 10~ Kidnapped Again**

Amy came back to consciousness, shivering, inside a darkish room. She was being held by two Ciphers under her arms as she twitched her fingertips. How had she survived being completely frozen? How had any of them? That's a good question. If I were you, I'd ask whoever invented anime physics. If they're unavailable, or if you're unable to speak Japanese, you're just going to have to run with me on this one.

"Wh-what the heck... l-let g-go of me!" Amy growled, teeth chattering as she tried to pry herself free of the hands holding her.

"Forget it sweetheart, you're going into isolation," said one of her guards with a smirk. The other was holding a hair dryer. Well, it seemed to be some sort of turbo hair dryer but whatever. This still wasn't very good.

"Isola- wait. Where's Gary? And Jesse, what did you do with them?" Amy thrashed about angrily.

"Shut up," growled the hair dryer holding guard and the two dragged Amy out of small room they were in, down a hallway, and into a smaller corridor with metal doors on either side. One was opened and Amy was thrust within. The door slammed shut behind her. Still shaking a bit, Amy checked her pockets. Empty.

"Damn it," Amy whispered and leaned against the wall. She curled her legs against her and sighed. This was her fault. She's the one... wasn't she? That suggested they all go to the mystery lab... Now they were all doomed. Her, Jesse, Gary... Celia and Cail too. And all their Pokemon...

And so Amy cried.

The rest of the group wasn't doing so well either. They were currently locked in cells much like Amy's and though no others were crying, Jesse was in some place beyond tears and Gary was ready to kill things. Celia was pacing and Cail was currently falling further into cigarette deprivation. He was not pleased.

But their Pokémon were arguably doing far worse.

"Glaaaace..." Isis moaned rubbing her forehead with her paw as she realised she was inside a glass container. Clearly, things had gone very wrong. A quick look around showed her the other Pokémon from her group in similar containers. Socrates was nearby, but seemed to be passed out. Glaceon pawed at the glass and cried out to him.

"Um... bre..." the black Pokémon slowly stirred awake and stumbled to his feet. He tried to move towards Isis but struck the glass, which drove the sleepiness from him "UMBREON?"

"Glace," Isis sighed and explained to Socrates all she knew, which basically consisted of the fact that they were outside the Cipher Lab and were probably inside now.

"Cu?" asked Gabriel from nearby. It seemed he'd woken as well. "Cubone bone?"

""FEAR?" Avion didn't seem pleased either. They then took a second look around and realised the strange shadow Pokémon weren't there. Which basically meant the only Pokémon of Gary's there was Socrates. Cail's Pokémon and Celia's Gligar, and her other Pokémon, a Teddiursa, were there however.

"Gli Gligar!" Gligar yelled and sent a flurry of attacks at the glass, but they left not a scratch.

"Dragoooooon," Selene even had been squished into a container. It was larger than the other cases, but she was still twisted up inside and looking very uncomfortable.

"Glaceon?" Isis asked if anyone could see Plusle and Minin.

"Num Num," that's right, despite not appearing out of his Pokeball since entering the region, Flash the Numel was sitting in one of the glass containers, and he could answer Isis' question in the positive. The two rodents were still out of it inside a case behind the fire Pokémon's. In fact, they were starting to stir as well.

"Pluuuuus..." Plusle groaned loudly, struggling to sit up. Seeing Minin laying lifelessly he shrieked and started to shake his partner until he two stirred and opened his eyes.

"Mi Mi?" the blue tipped electric Pokémon murmured as he got to his feet. They looked at each other and nodded before sending a flash of electricity at the glass... but nothing. They frowned. This was bad. But they were sure they could think up a plan, given time.

Unfortunately, time wasn't what they had as men in lab coats entered the room, picked up Flash's case and took it from the room without a word. The Pokémon weren't sure what this meant; only that it was very likely a bad thing.

"So you're Amy Tanner are you?" came a voice from behind the metal door. Amy raised her head and quickly wiped the tears from her face. A small panel had been slid back on the door revealing a pair of eyes behind glasses.

"Obviously," Amy muttered, getting slowly to her feet and glaring at this intruder.

"I'm Ein. You might be interested in meeting me."

"Not really," Amy said dismissively.

"Are you sure? I knew your mother back in the day. In fact, we worked very closely in the creation of Shadow Pokémon," Ein grinned, "She in fact was the one who invented the final lock to a Pokémon's heart that stops the purification process."

Amy stared. Her mom... but that couldn't be. Her mother wouldn't do that... "But she left Cipher! You're lying."

Ein chuckled. "The only reason she left Cipher was because she didn't like what we were doing to humans. She never cared about what we did to the Pokémon. They were tools, nothing more. Same with your father. Tools. Which is of course what they are... they simply failed to see that humans can also be tools."

"Pokémon aren't tools! My parents knew that!" Amy shouted, but then seemed to cut herself off. Her dad... never seemed to like Pokémon... and her mom... but...

"Really? Then why did Rui leave her Pokémon as Shadow Pokémon? She invented the final lock. If anyone knew how to break that lock it was her. Yet she didn't, I wonder why?"

"Sh-she..." Amy looked down, wide eyed. This was a blow, a very hard blow. "There's… no way. You're lying!"

"No. Anyway… I didn't have any good reason to tell you all this, I just figured you might be… interested," he closed the opening and left in chuckles. Amy's breathing quickened and her heart beat harder in rage. What a sadistic BASTARD.

That said... he had given her something to think about if she assumed what he said was true. It was true her dad never really liked Pokémon... but she thought now that it was because of that Ninetails... the one he thought killed her mom. What if... what if that Ninetails was a Shadow Pokémon? They _do_ attack their trainers. And without her mom, her Dad would have no idea if Shadow Pokémon were around or not... he wouldn't know his daughter inherited the power to see the auras. So... so what did that mean about her mother? Maybe... maybe she did make the Shadow block but... she did go against Cipher right? And maybe Ein was wrong, maybe she didn't know how to break the final seal. Or maybe she simply couldn't. Or maybe... maybe... oh she didn't know! Amy groaned and buried her face in her hands. Dang it.

W-well, Ein might be lying too. Yeah, he could easily be lying. Amy shivered. She seriously hoped he was lying...

Flash did not come back when the Cipher scientists returned. When they left with Celia's Gligar, Plusle and Minin realised what was happening... finally... they were to be slowly turned into Shadow Pokémon. Flash was already gone, Gligar was heading out now, and Plusle and Minin knew they had to get out of here. And probably save the others too. Yeah. So they assessed the situation. They were in a glass container on a table. So, logically, the way to escape would be to knock the container to the floor. The glass would, hypothetically, break. And even if it didn't, the sides were round so they could probably work it like a hamster wheel right? Right.

So the rodents got to work trying to tip over the container. They got it rocking but had to quickly stop it as the door to the room opened again, to the grinning Cipher scientists. A visible shiver went through the Pokémon in the room.

"Okay, the Glaceon's next," one scientist said, glancing at his list. The other nodded and lifted Isis' container.

"GLACE?" she shrieked and thrashed about inside the glass, desperately trying to break it.

"Heh, that glass is modelled after the molecular structure of Suicune ice, nothing harder to break out of." One Cipher laughed.

"UMBREON!" Socrates roared and started throwing himself against the glass... obviously to no avail.

As Isis was pulled out, Plusle and Minin returned to rocking the container. Suicune glass, shmeecune glass. They were getting out of this thing!

Gary growled and rubbed his foot in irritation. He'd just kicked the door as hard as he could and that hadn't boded well with his toes. In fact, it ached like crazy. None the less he was still angry as hell. After getting thrown in here he hadn't heard anything about anyone and if he didn't find out what-

A sliding panel on the door suddenly opened and a pair of eyes behind glinting glasses appeared.

"Ah, Gary Oak... I've just learned that not only are you grandson of Prof. Oak, you also happen to be grandson of the great Eagun and Beluh. Which of course is good news for you, it means you get to live a bit longer."

"You bastard! Where's Amy?" Gary raged.

"Temper, temper..." Ein tutted and then grinned. "Amy Tanner is perfectly safe. She is needed for tests and whatnot and we intend to use her for a quite a while... much longer then you. Which is far more then I can say for your other friends..."

Gary gritted his teeth. "What do you mean by that?"

Ein seemed pleased at the question. "Well, for one thing Jesse Hutch is almost done being useful to us. Once I'm given the go ahead we'll start torturing him to find out what his affiliation with the legendary beasts is. Then we'll probably kill him. And as for Celia and Cail Rivers, they have no usefulness at all. They'll be killed soon I'm sure. And of course, all your Pokémon will be made Shadow and distributed among Cipher members and the general public."

Gary twitched. "How... can you be... so EVIL?"

Ein laughed softly. "It's a talent," the panel closed and Gary leaned against the cell wall, infuriated, frustrated, and more than a little afraid.

Meanwhile, Plusle and Minin had managed to tip the container to the floor. There was a loud thunk when it hit, but there wasn't a single scratch. None the less they had the attention of all the other captured Pokémon and were busily figuring out how to run the case around the room. They quickly learned how to manoeuvre the thing and positioned themselves inside the edge of the door. When the door next opened, they quickly used Agility to zoom out, knocking the scientists aside as they raced down the hall.

Continuous Helping Hands sped the rodents up and they were soon grinning in the ecstasy of the chase. Chase it was, as wherever they went Ciphers came after them. This went very well. Until they hit a dead end corridor and smacked into the wall.

"PLUS!"

"MIN!"

The two groaned and lay back stunned as their case was quickly retrieved by their pursuers.

"Forget the order, you two are next!" snapped a woman with long red hair, clearing the hall to bring the two to the Shadow center. Plusle and Minin looked at each other wide eyed. This... this couldn't be it could it? Maybe... maybe they could fight the process. But they didn't know. They didn't even know what the process was that would close the door to a Pokémon's heart.

"You're going to kill me? Fine. But there's one thing I'd like to know before I die if it won't kill you to tell me," Celia growled, "How exactly do you go about 'closing the door' to a Pokémon's heart? I know it has something to do with brain surgery but-"

Ein laughed from behind the panel. "Brain surgery? Oh no... we don't need to get any surgical tools dirty for this procedure. We use electromagnetic pulses and subliminal messaging. It completely disrupts the normal workings of the brain. If I'm correct, I believe Team Rocket was working on a project for something similar at some point, but all it did was increase rage and required a headband to use the pulses. Very easy to remove. But our pulses actually alter nature. You can get the Pokémon to relearn certain attacks sure, you might even get it to lose some aggression, but the only way to completely reverse the effects of the procedure is to turn back time itself."

"I see," Celia said darkly.

"That's right," Ein laughed, "I hope you have fun thinking about that in your last hours!" he shut the door and continued down the cell block. A short ways away two Cipher Scientists were watching the scene.

"Dude... Ein's _brutal,_" one whispered.

"Yeah, he really likes psychological torture, but he likes physical too," the other shook his head, "I heard back when they were just killing whoever showed up with Shadow Sight he'd sometimes take them and spend hours dissecting them for his own amusement while they were still alive."

"Awe... come on, no one would do _that,_" the first one shuddered and his friend shrugged. With Ein... you never knew.

"Mi Mi MININ!" Minin shrieked as Plusle was taken to the electromagnet machine. The red tipped Pokémon was matching his friend's shrieks if not topping them. Minin was currently in the firm grip of rubber gloves.

Off to one side were cages holding snarling Pokémon. Flash was drooling and gnawing at the bars. Gligar was growling and lashing out at the walls of his prison. The worst may've been Isis... she simply lay on the floor of her cage, eyes glinting with anger and trained on the scientists outside. But this was no normal anger; there was no sanity behind those eyes.

In other words, this wasn't a reassuring sight for the rodent twosome.

"PLUS PLUS PLUS!" screamed Plusle as it was shoved between two large red metal beams and strapped down tightly.

"Okay, starting the neurological stimulation now," said a woman behind a computer screen clattering at a keyboard. Lights flashed around Plusle. He began to thrash and shout. "Receptors normal, beginning shutting down of the emotional channels."

Minin watched in horror as slowly his partner grew more violent in his thrashes. Drool began to creep from his jaw as he snarled and jerked. Minin was horrified, and when his partner's process was complete, he could barely recognise the Pokémon he'd raced down halls with less than a half hour before. And then it was his turn.

"MI MI MI!" Minin shrieked as Plusle was jammed into an empty cage and Minin was strapped in his place between the red metal.

"Alright, beginning stimuli-" and then there was an explosion of fire. Minin's world went black.

Cail paced his cell angrily. These Cipher bastards... They took his cigarettes! And of course, like any seasoned smoker, this would send him into withdrawal rage. And it had!

"I WILL KILL CIPHER!" he shrieked as Ein closed the panel to his cell. He had been smoking a cigarette as he spoke to Cail and blew some smoke into the cell before closing it up. This was rather mean.

So Cail started throwing himself against the door. And as his withdrawal got worse, his attacks got harder. It's a little known fact that when a frequent smoker is removes from smoke from a set period of time, they can attain super human strength.

The door buckled... and burst!

Yay! How convenient!

"I'M GOING TO- oh... heh. I'm out," Cail grinned, then glared down the hall at the other cells. There were quite a few. He ran up to the first cell and opened the panel.

Jesse sat quietly at the back of his cell. He already had been spoken to by Ein and told of all the tortures he'd get to endure. But that didn't hurt him nearly as much as knowing that he'd failed completely as a guardian. He was meant to protect the legendary beasts, and he'd failed. Miserably. Then he heard metal screeching as the door opened.

"Jesse?"

"Cail?" Jesse's head perked up and he turned his head in the direction of the chain smoker's voice.

"Uh, yeah. I broke out, let's go," he walked forward and grabbed Jesse's arm, pulling the ginger up. The two quickly ran into the hall... to be met with Cipher scientists who heard the alarm go off when Cail's door opened.

"Oh no! Cail, get out of here, I'll-"

"Shut up and get on my back," Cail growled, grabbing Jesse's arm tighter and guiding him onto his shoulders so he could carry him piggy-back style. "OUT OF MY WAY!" Cail screamed and charged. He looked rather scary. So the nerdy scientists wisely darted out of the way as Cail and Jesse charged out.

In her cell that was unknowingly across from Jesse's, Amy wondered what the screaming was about.

Minin shuddered and opened his eyes blearily. The room was ablaze and towering over him was a furry face with glowing red eyes.

"Niiiiine," growled the Pokémon above him. She leaned down and sniffed Minin. She shuddered slightly, and then got down on the floor.

"Minin?" Minin asked but got no reply. Ninetails looked pointedly at her back, clearly wanting Minin to climb on. But Minin glanced worriedly at Plusle in the cage, snarling away. Ninetails followed his gaze and then sent a jet of flame at the cages. Flash, Gligar and Isis burst forth and faced Ninetails, growling. Ninetails narrowed her eyes at them and Minin felt a wave of strange energy course through him. The Pokémon seemed to feel it as well, and calmed enough to follow Ninetails.

Meanwhile, Minin ran up to Plusle and took his arm. "Mi Mi?"

"Pluuuu, PLUS!" Plusle snatched his arm away and snarled at Minin. The blue tipped rodent bit his lip and felt his eyes water. But he didn't have long to lament as Ninetails came over and practically threw the two rodents onto her back before racing into the hallway.

Cail and Jesse turned a corner in the hallway and suddenly Jesse fell off Cail's back. Quite frankly, he simply released his grip. Cail stopped and turned to the blind boy.

"What'd you let go for?" he demanded. He wasn't really in the mood to stop for a bathroom break.

"Sh-shadow Pokémon, a small group ahead of us, but one feels-"

"GLACE!"

"GLI!"

"NUM!"

"PLUS!"

"Mi?" Minin wondered at his partner's anger.

"NINE!" The group of Pokémon froze as they rounded a corner and faced Jesse and Cail.

"Hey, isn't that... that's Celia's Gligar! And Amy's Glaceon... Isis! And the freaky rodent things!"

"Careful Cail! All but one of those is a Shadow Pokémon!" Jesse shuddered.

Ninetails looked from Cail to Jesse slowly. Minin looked up and recognized the humans of course and quickly told Ninetails who they were. Ninetails cocked her head slightly to one side, narrowing her eyes as if straining to understand. After a few long moments she nodded and then walked past Cail and Jesse, followed by the three other shadow Pokémon.

"Hey, I wouldn't go back there if I were you, That's where Cipher has-"

"Cail, follow them!" Jesse said suddenly.

"I thought you said don't trust them?"

"I said be careful!" Jesse snapped, "Now follow them, they're going to save Amy and the others!"

"... how do you know?"

"Just trust me okay?"

Cail shrugged, his cigarette withdrawal temporarily forgotten in the excitement as he grabbed Jesse and they headed back the way they'd come.

_((Joyful Note: Whelp, finally finished my Hetalia fic's next part so you guys get an update too. Enjoy it. University is hard, no idea when the next update's coming.))_


	33. Ninetails

**Hidden In Shadows Part 11~ Ninetails**

Amy's head jerked up from her stupor as a fiery blast rocked her cell. She dashed to the other side as the door fell forward.

"Aims?"

"Amy?"

"Cail? Jesse? Thank God!" Amy shrieked and ran outside and hugged both boys. Then she felt the coursing Shadow energy and looked down. Her blood ran cold.

"Erm... yeah. Cipher's already turning the Pokémon shadow..." Cail said carefully as Amy dropped to her knees.

"Isis? No... no way..." she whispered, looking at the pulsing aura and soulless eyes of her first ever Pokémon. She felt a hesitant hand on his back.

"A-Amy? I'm... I'm sure we'll find a cure for this," Jesse whispered.

Amy nodded slowly, looking unsure. "Yeah," she sighed and turned to the other Pokémon. "So... did..." she swallowed, "Did Flash burn down the door?"

"Ah, no," Cail shook his head and pointed a few feet to Amy's right. She looked. And she gasped.

She could tell the Ninetails was a Shadow Pokémon. That much was unmistakable. But the aura was really thin, like a film over her body. Nothing like the other Pokémon, theirs were like thunderclouds. Amy wondered... but how...

"Are you..." she began to ask but before she could get the words out the fire fox sent a blast of flame at another cell. The door fell in.

"FINALLY!" Gary snapped and came out of the cloud of smoke. He saw Amy and grinned. "AMY! You're okay right?" he ran over and swept his girlfriend into a tight hug. Amy sputtered and struggled against him.

"GARY! I. Can't. BREATHE!" she managed to giggle out as Gary finally drew back. She sighed and stood on tip toe to peck his cheek. "Gary... Isis and Flash are Shadow Pokémon. Celia's Gligar too, and we don't know where the other Pokémon are."

"M-mi mi," Amy and Gary looked down to see Minin looking up at them, seeming tired, and holding the arm of Plusle. He looked zombie-like, surrounded by aura. Amy's eyes widened.

"Oh... poor Plusle... do you know where the other Pokémon are?" Amy asked. Minin nodded. There was another blast and Celia came out to join the group.

"Hey, you found Gligar!" Celia smiled.

"Yeah but... he's a Shadow Pokémon Ceil," Cail said with a frown.

Celia's jaw dropped. "Aw crap."

"Don't worry, we'll find a cure," Amy said with more strength than she felt.

Celia slowly shook her head. "You guys... Ein told me what the Shadow Pokémon process is. They use magnets and electrons and stuff to totally wreck a Pokémon's thought process. You can get it to relearn things and even lose aggression over time, but it's like... brain damage. The only way to reverse would be to reverse time itself... it's just... not possible."

Amy breathing quickened but she tried to calm herself. "Well... we'll think about that later. For now, we have to get our other Pokémon and get out. Minin?"

The electric mouse nodded and headed into the corridor, followed by the humans and other Shadow Pokémon except for Ninetails and Amy. These two stayed for a moment longer, just looking at each other.

"Were you... did you... know my mother?" Amy asked quietly.

"AMY! COME ON!" Gary yelled, running back and grabbing Amy's hand. Ninetails took off past them into the hall. The two trainers followed.

"UMBRE!" a shout was heard as Cail wrenched open the door to the room. They were met by a chorus of cheers from the Pokémon. Amy went to Selene's case and flicked a series of switches around the edge. The container shimmered and seemed to melt away. Selene unfolded herself and stretched as the other trainers rescued the other Pokémon from their prisons.

"Wait..." Celia said as she hugged her Teddiursa, "We haven't seen any scientists since we broke out..."

"We haven't?" Jesse said, startled.

"No... Celia's right..." Amy said slowly.

"Sounds like good luck to me," Gary huffed as Umbreon looked in horror at Isis.

"Umbre..." he whispered and jumped back as Isis let loose a snarl.

"Ni," Ninetails said sharply. A strange energy passed through the room and Isis released a low growl before turning docile again.

"What was that?" Cail asked raising an eyebrow.

"I-I think Ninetails is using some primal psychic energy," Jesse said in surprise.

"To control the Shadow Pokémon? Weird," Celia commented, then shrugged, "Whatever, let's get out of here before someone shows up."

"Wait a second! The Shadow Pokémon we had before, and Raiku, they're still missing!" Amy said sharply, "We can't leave yet. Besides, even if we somehow found the exit, we're surrounded by an Entie lava moat remember? We can't get out through that."

"Unless we have Suicune," Jesse said quietly.

Gary groaned. "Fine... ask Ninetails. It probably knows where they are, it seems to know everything else."

"I'm not so sure. I mean, she's brain damaged right?" Cail asked his sister. Celia shrugged but Ninetails just looked down. Then she jumped to her feet and took off down the hall. The shadow Pokémon followed, so did the rest of their now much larger group as the Pokémon didn't seem to have their Pokeballs around.

"Okay, this was just too easy," Gary said stubbornly as they came into the room where their confiscated shadow Pokémon were and their Pokeballs too. That really was too easy.

"I'm not going to question anything at this point!" Cail said gleefully. His cigarettes were found as well. He quickly lit one up and sighed contentedly as smoke filled his lungs. They set about recalling their Pokémon. Amy didn't like putting her beloved Flash and Isis away like they were, but she didn't really have much choice...

Raiku also happened to be in the room. Amy quickly put his Pokeball in Jesse's hand.

"Thank you Amy," Jesse sighed, "But we're still stuck here without Suicune."

"Well... Ninetails got in didn't she?" Celia pointed out slowly.

"Yeah, but Ninetails are fire Pokémon themselves. She might be able to withstand the heat enough to get through." Gary said firmly "I still say this is way too easy. Where the hell are all the scientists?"

Ninetails twitched her tails to catch the attention of the young trainers. She then headed into the hall again. Plusle had been placed in a ball, but Minin stayed out and was quick to head after the fire fox. The human group followed as well.

Down a few more hallways, Amy's mind was racing. Firstly, was this Ninetails... THE Ninetails? The one that... that had... her mother's... And also, whether it was or not how did it get here? Who sent it? And why does it know where everything is? Well, if it was her mother's... maybe she just remembered this building? But that still didn't explain what she was doing there.

Ninetails halted in front of one door and there were clear explosions and yells coming from inside. It sounded like a battle.

"Maybe this Ninetails isn't alone!" Celia grinned.

"Then... who?" Jesse asked, catching his breath.

"NIIIIIIIIINE!" Ninetails roared at the door.

"Oh!" a female gasp came from inside and then: "Use Hypnosis, Mimey!"

"... Mimey?" Gary blinked.

Amy's jaw dropped "No. Freaking. Way."

The shouts died down and the door opened.

"Hello Amy, sweetheart! And Gary, good to see you!" Delia Ketchum said cheerily giving a wave from her heat-proof suit.

"D-Delia?" Amy twitched, "H-how... why..."

Delia winked. "Well sweetie, when I heard my new husband was kidnapped; there was no way I was staying at home! Mimey was worried too, weren't you Mimey?"

"Mime Mime!" cheered her Mr. Mime.

"Okay... but how did you get _here_?" Gary asked.

"Excuse me, who the heck is this?" Cail asked, pointing at Delia.

"My step-mom," Amy explained.

"Oh, really?" Jesse asked, confused.

"Oh, you must be Jesse. Beluh told me all about you!" Delia took the blind boy's hand and shook it carefully. He blushed.

"Oh, erm, good things I hope?" Jesse laughed nervously.

"Of course!"

"Wait wait wait! So you saw my Grandma?" Gary asked in total confusion.

"Oh yes! Well when I got here Mimey helped me sneak in past the border and we went straight to Agate, but you'd already left for the lab by then. It took a while to get here since we had to take a boat to Orre. Anyway, they told me where you went and I came to the lab, but there seemed to be a heat shield up. So Mimey and I took our motorcycle we borrowed from an elder in Agate and went back, and that nice Nett boy whipped up a heat shield! And when we got back this nice Ninetails was outside and seemed to want to help so I thought, the more the merrier!" she laughed.

Amy stared. "So... Ninetails was just outside?"

"Yes!" Delia grinned. "Now I think if we went one at a time with the heat shield we could-"

"No, we have to find Suicune first!" Amy insisted.

"Oh, you mean the big blue Pokémon that lead scientist had? I don't know what Ninetails did to it but it just went straight into the Pokeball again when it saw her. I have it here," Delia took it out.

"Suicune!" Jesse gasped as reached for the ball. Delia gave it to him and Jesse looked very sad "I wish I knew how to reverse this... they all feel so dark..."

"Okay, we have Suicune. Strangely convenient. We have our Pokémon. We have everyone. The scientists are all asleep. Can we GO now?" Gary demanded.

"I don't see why not" Amy said with a raised eyebrow "Why are you so agitated, Gary?"

"Because we're kind of in DANGER here! I thought that was pretty obvious!" the spiky haired teen turned to Ninetails. "So which way is out?"

"Nine," Ninetails chuffed and turned down the hall. Most headed after her but Cail hung back for a moment. He checked the room. Ein was lying on the floor, fast asleep. Cail grinned.

Carefully going up to the sleeping scientist, Cail took his glinting glasses and smashed them. Then he quickly found a marker in his coat pocket and wrote 'I LOVE MY LITTLE PONYTA' and 'Bronytas rule' on Ein's forehead before quickly racing after his group. Evil bastard deserved it.

The group did in fact encounter a few scientists on the top floor who sounded the alarm. Luckily their back-up had already been dispatched of downstairs and they were also easily subdued with Mimey's Hypnosis. The group managed to get outside and faced the wall of heat.

"So... Jesse," Cail said dragging on his cigarette, "Can you get Suicune to cool off a section of this?"

Jesse frowned. "I'm not sure... Suicune is a Shadow Pokémon now, so he might not listen."

"Nine Nine," Ninetails stepped forward and nudged the ball in Jesse's hands. A flash of light and Suicune stood in front of him. It snarled until Ninetails created that same strange energy again. Suicune stared blankly for a moment, then turned to the heat ring and fired a jet of ice. Steam erupted and when it cleared, an ice bridge spanned the gap. It seemed to be sweating, but it should be okay for the moment. The group wasted no time crossing the bridge. And luckily their motorcycles were still behind the rock where they left them. Awesome.

"Oh hey... I just remembered something!" Gary said as Amy got on the motorcycle behind him.

"What?" Amy asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Agate has a Celebi Shrine in it!" Gary said excitedly.

"... how is that relevant?" Amy asked dully.

"Celebi is the Time Traveller Pokémon! It's said he has control over time!" Gary explained with a grin.

"... how is that relevant?" Amy repeated.

Gary rolled his eyes. "I'll find out when we get back," he revved the engine.

"HEY! YOU CAN'T ESCAPE! GET BACK HERE!" a yell came from a Cipher Goon trying to cross the almost melted ice bridge. Unfortunately the bridge melted completely when he was part way across... (well I won't disgust you with the adjectives I thought of to describe that little scene of melting horror. I have deemed it way too icky to really present to any audience that reads Pokémon fan fiction.)

"Well. That was a good learning lesson wasn't it kids? Remember, never cross a melting ice bridge over an inferno!" Delia said cheerily.

"I'll keep that in mind," Jesse said, feeling sickened by the sizzling he'd just heard. Ninetails jumped into Delia's sidecar, next to Mimey who seemed a little apprehensive. Soon they took off across the desert for Agate town again.

When they reached the Agate they were quite shocked to see the border being patrolled by old people with rather vicious looking Pokémon. When they approached they saw the man and woman they'd seen the other day, with the Charmeleon and Weepinbell. They never learned the elders' names. But the Pokémon were Charles and Isabella.

"Stop! No Cipher Goons are getting past this line!" chuffed the old man.

Amy waved. "Uh, hi, remember us?"

"NO!" the lady snapped. Amy blinked.

"Um... I'm Eagan and Beluh's grandson? We double battled you?" Gary said carefully.

"No I don't remember you! Now go away!" the lady screeched, "Isabella! Razor Leaf!" she called and the Weepinbell send sharp leaves at the crew.

"Oh dear, barrier Mimey!" Delia said quickly and her Mr. Mime jumped out of the side car and sent up his invisible shield. Ninetails watched this. "Now see here! We've just come from the Cipher Lab and-"

"OHO! So they admit their treachery!" the old man said puffing out his frail chest "Charles! Flamethrower!"

"Light Screen Mimey!" the flames were deflected.

"Now come on! We were all here this morning! The sun's going down and we want to get in! We haven't eaten all day!" Cail snapped.

"OH SO NOW YOU WANT TO STEAL OUR FOOD?"

"Oh geez," Celia rubbed her forehead.

"Um, perhaps we should regroup?" Jesse suggested.

"No! We can get past these geezers!" Gary said grinding his teeth together, "YOU GUYS ARE FREAKING SENILE YOU KNOW THAT?"

"At least we're not Ciphers!" the old man snapped.

"Neither are we!"

"LIES!" the old lady shrieked.

"What the heck are you two doing? That's my grandson and his friends!"

"Beluh!" Amy said in relief.

"... maybe they're Ciphers in disguise?" the old man said hopefully.

"Idiot," Beluh growled, smacking him upside the head with her cane. She then turned a warm smile on the group. "I'm glad you're back! You have to tell us everything that happened. You'll have to excuse the border patrol. We're keeping Cipher out but most of the village, though still physically fit, are getting on in years and... well let's get up to the house anyway."

The group looked at each other, shrugged, then got off the motorcycles to follow Beluh.

"So the only way to reverse the Shadow Pokémon process is to reverse time itself?" Eagan asked Celia who nodded.

"Pretty much hopeless, huh?"

Eagan turned to Gary. "And you believe we can use Celebi to do that for us?"

"Well... wouldn't that be ideal? It would've never happened!"

"Impossible," Eagan shook his head, "Celebi can control pockets of time and time travel, but he can't just turn back time. Only Dialga can do that."

"That's true," Jesse nodded, "But Celebi can control _pockets_ of time as you said. So what if he just turned back time for one Pokémon? It would reverse all damage for that one."

Beluh frowned. "Yes... but all memories gained since they turned into Shadow Pokémon would be lost."

Amy frowned. "Well... for our Pokémon turned today it shouldn't matter too much, right?"

"Yeah," Celia nodded happily, "Gligar can get back to normal, Celebi would only have to reverse a few hours! And the Shadow Pokémon Gary caught could probably be turned back without a big problem too."

"Hey yeah, that's right!" Gary grinned.

"But... what about Ninetails?" Amy asked. The group turned to the fire fox Pokémon. She seemed to have been listening attentively to the conversation. If it was her mother's, that's years of time to rewind. And all memories would be erased. Anything Amy could possibly learn from her would be gone.

"Nine," her tails twitched and she nodded firmly at Minin, who was also listening on the floor and getting excited at the prospect of getting Plusle back to normal. Minin turned to Amy and pointed at Ninetails. He nodded.

"She wants to have time rewound for her?" Amy asked wide eyed. Minin nodded. Amy looked at Ninetails. "Even if you lose all your memories?" the fire fox nodded, eyes determined. Amy frowned, but nodded back, carefully. This wasn't up to her to decide, it was Ninetails' choice. "Okay."

"Wait wait wait!" Cail said throwing up his hands, "Before we get all excited, do we even know for sure if Celebi can do this? Or if we can even get him here? He's travels through time and has shrines all over the world!"

"Well, let's go down to the shrine and see what we can do," Beluh smiled gently.

"I made rice balls!" Delia called from the kitchen.

"Mime Mime!" an eager addition came from beside her, holding soy sauce.

"After rice balls of course," Eagan grinned as Delia came in with a tray. The kids slapped their foreheads in exasperation, but at least now they had something of a plan.

_((Joyful Note: I LIVE! To die again... anyway, I need to get back to work on Hetalia fics now! Hope you enjoyed!))_


	34. Reversing Time

**Hidden In Shadows Part 12~ Reversing Time**

Rice balls ingested, Eagan and Beluh led the way to the Celebi Shrine. Well, in the case of the Agate forest temple it was more of a pillar than a shrine. Delia and Mimey would be staying at the house in a tidying frenzy. On the way they picked up Nett and the other Cipher kids who were working in the Pokémon Center, trying to remotely hack the Cipher database. Of course they were excited at the prospect of possibly seeing Celebi.

"I wonder if I can analyze the power it uses for time travel!" Nett said in his excitement, carting his laptop.

"Let's get there first, okay?" Cail sighed as they entered the grove where the Celebi Pillar stood.

"Wow, it's really quiet here," Amy whispered. It was true. In fact, it was silent except for the footsteps of the group as it entered the sacred space.

"So... how do we summon Celebi?" Gary asked not bothering to keep his voice down. Beluh smacked his head and shushed him. "WHAT?" he was smacked again.

"We use this," Beluh produced a piece of wood proudly.

"... Okay, what's that?" Celia asked blankly.

Jesse turned his head towards it, despite not seeing it. "I know that! It's a Summoner!"

"... okay, other than the 'no duh' thing as she just said we were going to use it to summon Celebi," Nett said deadpan, "What exactly is a 'Summoner'?"

Jesse sighed. "Well, each legendary Pokémon has an item that will summon that Pokémon to you, or else awaken it. You must've heard of the Red and Blue Orbs in the Hoenn region?"

"Oh yeah, they control Groudon and Kyogre right?" Amy said after a moment's thought.

"Well, they awaken them anyway," Jesse grimaced a little, "Anyway, if this summons Celebi, it must be a Time Flute."

"Indeed it is," Beluh smiled. Jesse went on.

"Of course Celebi is unique as it travels a few regions. So it's the only legendary Pokémon with more than one of its summoning item."

"Okay, so someone has to play the time flute, I'm guessing?" Gary said irritably at Amy's look of admiration directed at Jesse during that last speech.

"Exactly!" Eagan smiled "Beluh, my dear?"

The old woman smiled and put the flute to her lips. In the absolute silence, each note seemed to reverberate off every tree trunk, crystal clear. As the tune went on, Amy noticed a new sound enter; a strange tinkling and rustle as a wind wound its way among the tree branches and rustled the leaves. Then the pillar began to glow. Ninetails' fur bristled, but she stood in rapt attention.

Then a cry pierced the air "BIIIIIIIIII!"

A bright flash of light flashed atop the pillar and stretched into the sky in a beam. Inside Amy squinted and saw a small shape forming in the center. As the beam faded, a small light green Pokémon with tiny wings and a big head floated in its place. It opened its eyes and looked at Beluh. It smiled.

"Bi Bi BI!" he shrieked and propelled itself at Beluh's head. It hugged her quite tightly.

"It's good to see you again, Celebi!" Beluh laughed.

Eagan smiled at the astonished teenagers "Beluh is the guardian of the Celebi Shrine Pillar."

Jesse looked startled. "Really? Who did she inherit that position from?"

Eagan looked a tad confused but shrugged it off. "Her own mother, I believe."

"And before that?"

Eagan frowned a little at Jesse. "Well, Beluh's mother built the shrine. Orre wasn't settled all that long ago. In fact, she fashioned the time flute Beluh just used."

"Did she come from Sinnoh, then?" Jesse asked with raised eyebrows.

"Uh, yes I believe so, but why-"

"Oh!" Jesse exclaimed "I'm related to Beluh! Well, I have to be, if she's a guardian."

Gary stared at Jesse. "Wait... I'm related to this kid?" He didn't seem very happy.

"That's really not very important right now," Amy said in irritation and walked quickly to Beluh and Celebi. The green Pokémon looked at her with big eyes. "Celebi, something really bad has happened to some of our Pokémon. Could you... could you reverse time for them? Till just before their brains were messed with by Cipher? It only happened a few hours ago for, erm, some of them."

"Biiiii? Bi," Celebi nodded.

"Great! Uh, we'll do the ones that were turned at Cipher while we were there first then," Amy said, releasing Isis and Flash. Celia released Gligar and Gary released Plusle. Minin was watching carefully from a short distance and cried out a little at Plusle's glares. Amy felt her eyes water at the pulsing clouds of blackness still flowing around the Pokémon.

"Bi Bi Bi BIIIII!" Celebi screamed in glee as it started zooming round and round the group of Pokémon. As it did so the Shadow Pokémon watched it, getting more and more dizzy. They fell to the ground, seemingly unconscious. Amy bit her lip. There was a bright flash that lasted a fraction of a second. Celebi slowed to a stop and floated near the Pokémon. Amy gasped, the auras were completely gone! It was as if they were never there in the first place, and she supposed for them that was now the case.

"G-Glace?" Isis groaned as she woke first, putting a paw to her forehead and rubbing. She looked around, eyes wide. She saw Amy and ran for her, and Amy fell down to her knees and hugged her. Flash soon woke and joined the little group hug. Gligar was quickly scooped up by a happy Celia and when Plusle woke Minin immediately glomped him and started excitedly trying to fill him in on what had happened since time was rewound for his body and mind.

"Alright. Now, uh Celebi?" Gary asked the flying Pokémon who turned to him with a smile. "We, uh, aren't exactly sure how far in the past the rest of the Shadow Pokémon were turned, but other than Ninetails their Shadow auras are pretty fresh. And Suicune and Raiku could only've been turned a few months ago, right?"

"Uh, yes," Jesse nodded.

"So, could you just sort of gradually make them younger until Amy can't see the auras anymore?" Gary asked.

"Biiiiii….." Celebi seemed to be thinking about it. "BI!" it nodded with a smile. Gary sighed and released Furret, Misdeveus and Murcrow. Celebi went to each one and as he went, Amy noticed the auras grew darker and more thunderous. She was afraid at first, but then realised this made sense. As time passed the aura usually diminished, so if time was going backwards then it would grow until… wait, there!

"STOP!" Amy and Jesse yelled at the same time during each Pokémon's instant of aura vanishing. Amy supposed they might've gone back a couple of weeks and looked far more confused than the first group of Pokémon. Then again, they were with a strange group of people in a strange place, and if Amy had seen the Shadow Pokémon Transition Room, she'd know their last memories were of being locked into a machine by scary people in lab coats. For the moment, Gary tried to recall them. But it didn't work. He stared.

"Oh, that couldn't work, their bodies are still connected to their old Pokeballs right now," Celia reminded Gary. The spiky haired teen rolled his eyes and used his Snag machine to 'catch' the Pokémon again. They'd worry about this later.

"So, Raiku and Suicune…" Jesse dug into his pocket when there was an explosion that rocked the grove. Celebi shrieked and vanished. Beluh hid the Time Flute away and Eagan quickly released Pika. The group's eyes widened as Ein marched into the clearing, looking rather pissed off. He was flanked by a bunch of other scientists, all with Shadow Pokémon at the ready.

"NO ONE ESCAPES THE CIPHER LAB!"

"Uh... we already did..." Amy raised an eyebrow.

"NO YOU DIDN'T!" Ein stamped his foot, "GET THEM!"

"Pika! Thunderbolt!"

"Isis Blizzard, Flash Flamethrower!"

"Gligar, Swift!"

"Min Min!" The blue rodent used Helping Hand.

"PLUSLE!" The red rodent used Thundershock.

"NINE NINE!" Ninetails sent forth a blast of hot flame.

"... crap," Ein said as the attacks hit them and sent them sailing away over the trees.

"... well. That was..." Gary started.

"Weird," Cail finished, "So can we get Celebi back now?"

"Oh, well, it's... we can't," Beluh shook her head, "Not until tomorrow anyway."

"... great," Gary groaned.

"I'm going to find out how Ein and those other scientists got in. Wait here," Eagan said firmly, heading out of the grove.

"I think it's probably some kind of dues ex machine. I'll run some tests," Nett said running out of the grove as well.

"I'd better follow my husband. Gary dear, take your friends up to the house," Beluh said and left as well.

Back in the house the group was sitting watching the TV. Apparently Cipher had hijacked the airwaves and were broadcasting images of Amy, Jesse, and the rest of the group saying they had to be captured at all costs. They also were demanding they give themselves up. Gary and Cail were entertaining themselves by making fun of the broadcaster's hair.

"Seriously, what kind of styling gel makes hair stand up directly from the scalp?" Gary snorted.

"And seriously, who told this guy green hair was normal? It looks like people have been blowing their noses and wiping them in his hair!" Cail laughed.

"Eww..." Celia made a face and Amy shook her head. Boys. Well, not Jesse she supposed.

Meanwhile Ninetails was watching the TV as well. Amy turned her attention to the white fire fox. The thin film of Shadow Aura still pulsed vaguely, but otherwise she seemed like a very normal Pokémon. Was rewinding time for her really necessary? Those were years of experience and memories that would be gone. But Ninetails wanted to go back. Why?

Then Ninetails, who had been paying attention, winced and put her head in her paws, shutting her eyes with a grimace on her face, as if concentrating was painful. Well, she did technically have brain damage... that was probably it. Amy sighed. This was Ninetails' decision, if she thought she'd be happier the other way... but Amy had to know first!

"N-Ninetails?" Amy asked in a whisper and the fire fox looked up at her "Could I talk to you in the other room for a moment?" Gary and Cail didn't notice the two leave, but Celia did, and Jesse noticed Ninetails' aura move as well. They wondered what this was about.

...

"Niiine" Ninetails yawned and sat upright, facing Amy who was kneeling on the kitchen floor. Delia and Mimey were now busily tidying up things upstairs; she really couldn't stand to see a messy house.

"So, I know you want to have time reversed for you, so you won't have trouble concentrating anymore, and I'd imagine other troubles, but that's still a lot of memories you're giving up," Amy bit her lip.

Ninetails shook her head and put a paw on Amy's shoulder. Looking into Ninetails' eyes, she saw mostly darkness, but a tiny crackling light was in the center. Amy stared and there was a flash. She fell backward and shook her head.

"What was that?" she asked, he mouth gaping. Ninetails licked her paw and gave her a sideways glance. "Well, whatever. You're sure, right?" Ninetails nodded. "Then, before you forget everything and won't understand the question, were you my mother's Ninetails? I won't question how you found me or how you controlled those Shadow Pokémon. I won't question that, just please tell me, were you my mother's Ninetails? Were you Rui's Ninetails?"

The white fur on Ninetails' back bristled gently and she seemed to let out a slow breath before nodding slowly. Amy felt her eyes water as she flung her arms around the Pokémon's neck.

...

Eagan and Beluh finally returned looking rather grim.

"What's wrong grandma?" Gary asked Beluh as she sagged down in her armchair.

"Lily's dead," she said blankly.

"Who's Lily?" Cail asked raising an eyebrow.

"She's the woman with the Weepinbell, who was battling you earlier. It seems she was arguing with her husband and Ein just... took them by surprise. Didn't even bother to battle, just blasted straight through." Eagan shook his head. "If they didn't want you two alive, they'd probably have tried ploughing through us just as easily."

"Oh my gosh," Amy said wide eyed, hands covering her mouth.

"Henry's devastated, understandably," Beluh grimaced.

Eagan shot his wife a confused look. "Devastated? He was dancing and cheering about outliving the old broad when we got there."

Beluh glared. "Well yes he thinks he'll be happy. But when he realises how lonely he is without her in the house, he won't be dancing anymore."

"... yes dear," Eagan said , though he seemed skeptical."Well anyway, it's dark out and it's probably in our best interests to get some sleep. Beluh and I have to patrol for the first few dark hours, but we'll be back. Trust me when I say no one will manage to sneak up on us!"

"You bet they won't," Beluh said firmly, getting back on her feet determinedly.

"Well be careful!" Celia said still looking shocked.

"Maybe... maybe I should come too," Jesse said softly.

"What? Jesse, what good would you-" Gary started angrily but Jesse cut him off with a small glare gracing his freckled features.

"I can sense Shadow auras. So I could tell if they're coming, even in the dark. Also, even though Suicune and Raiku are Shadow Pokémon we still have some kind of connection, they could help."

"I sense Shadow auras too Jesse," Amy said darkly, "But the thing is, Cipher wants_ us_. If we're out there in the open that's basically holding bait out for them to attack. At least in here they won't know exactly where we are and therefore might consent to wait a bit before showing up."

Jesse slumped against the back of the couch. "I guess... yeah. I was being stupid."

"Not stupid, just optimistic," Cail said reaching for a cigarette, "Stupidly optimistic... hey Gare, think I could smoke in here?"

"Not unless you pictured being caned by my grandmother as your preferred method of death." Gary said deadpan. Beluh and Eagan laughed at that, and then sent Cail small glares.

"... so I'll be going outside for a bit then" Cail said rising and heading out the door. Eagan and Beluh smiled at the remaining kids.

"Go to bed, I'm sure Delia's done making them up by now," Eagan laughed and the elderly couple made their exit.

...

When Amy opened her eyes the next day, she found to her surprise she was getting sandwiched. On one side Celia seemed to have confused her with a teddy bear. On the other Delia had had Mimey place barrier to stop her falling out of the small bed, and Amy was feeling rather claustrophobic. It was still dark in the room, but an across-the-room glance at the clock told her it was about 6:30am and she felt awake enough to try wiggling out of the body prison. However, when she moved her feet she noticed another weight on her feet. Squinting in the dark she made out a gleaming coat and a pair of red-tinged eyes.

"Nine," it whispered and leaped from the bed, looking back at Amy pointedly. Amy glanced at her bed mates quickly before getting out from under the covers and getting off the bed. How she didn't wake anybody up was beyond her. She jammed her shoes on her feet, ignoring socks, and followed the fire Pokémon out of the room and as she entered the hallway where there was more light, she noticed a bit of wood clutched in the Ninetails' teeth. She wondered what this was about as she continued to follow Ninetails out of the house and down a path. She recognised this path. It was the one to the Celebi Shrine Pillar.

They entered the grove. Above stars silently watched as Ninetails approached the shrine before turning to Amy and setting the piece of wood at her feet. Amy had long since figured out this was the Time Flute.

"But Ninetails, I have no idea how to play this thing!" Amy whispered taking the flute into her hands. "Why can't we wait until we're all together, I thought we could only use this once per day."

"Ninetails!" she shot Amy a glare and the thin aura she had flared a little. Amy still seemed very unsure, but decided to trust Ninetails. Besides, there was always another day... r-right? She raised the flute to her lips and blew.

As it turned out, there was little she had to do other then blow. It was as if her fingers moved on their own to play the notes of the haunting tune. Somehow in just lightening skylight the notes were even more beautiful, and when the trees rustled Amy shivered in anticipation for the beam of light. When it appeared, with Celebi inside, and the last notes of the tune finished playing, Amy fell to her knees, flute clutched in her sweating hands.

"Ninetails Nine!"

"Celebi?"

"Nine Nine! Ninetails!"

"Bi? Bi Bi BI Bi Biiiiii?" Celebi looked concerned about whatever Ninetails was asking for, but conceded in the end. Amy watched in silence as Celebi approached Ninetails who seemed to shudder in her own anticipation.

"Nine!" Ninetails said suddenly before adding a brief speech to Celebi. Celebi frowned, but nodded and continued its work, circling the fire fox who in her last moment before passing out gave Amy a decisive nod and in her mind she thought she heard a soft echoing voice telling her to wait just a moment longer...

Ninetails's aura grew. Amy stared in horror as the peaceful Pokémon's thundercloud grew like a hurricane, flashing red constantly... the others didn't do that, did they? She couldn't recall... but it was horrible to watch, and she had no sense of how long it took. It felt like hours despite the fact the sky didn't seem to lighten much during it.

Then it happened, the aura vanished. Amy was about to alert Celebi, but it stopped on its own. That was weird... did that mean Ninetails told it exactly how far back she needed to go in time?

Ninetails stood slowly, shaking her head. She seemed rather confused, understandably. She looked at Amy. Her eyes seemed troubled but... clear. Wonderfully clear! The darkness was gone. But she also seemed... resigned. And a little sad. She looked at Celebi now.

"Bi... Bi Bi Bi Bi?" Celebi frowned. Ninetails nodded, and seemed to smile a little. She looked at Amy and Celebi sighed, confused, and disappeared back into time. Ninetails walked up to Amy's kneeling form, and caught her eyes again. There was the spark of light again, but much brighter. Then Amy felt her mind go blank.

...

Gary had woken up to hear footsteps in the hallway. After climbing off the edge of the bed and stepping over Jesse and Cail on the floor (as if he was sharing a bed with THEM, geez) he opened the door he caught a glimpse of Amy heading down the stairs. That was... weird. He went into the hall.

He followed her out the house, down the path and watched her enter the grove. He didn't know what was going on, so he sort of spied on them from just outside, saw Celebi appear, saw Ninetails fall and rise again, and then approached Amy.

Then Amy fell forward.

"Amy?" Gary jolted out of his supposed trance and moved forward. Ninetails' fur bristled and she growled at the spiky haired teen, but then Amy's head rose and she reached out to brush Ninetails' fur gently.

"Ssh Rosetta, he's her boyfriend," she smiled and turned to Gary. He stood frozen. This... wasn't Amy. Her eyes didn't look like Amy's, they seemed... well older for one thing.

"Who are you?" Gary whispered his throat dry.

"Hello Gary. I'm Rui, Amy's mother."

Obviously this was cause for some alarm. However, Gary might've overdid it to faint. When he came to a moment later, Amy/Rui was kneeling over him, looking rather alarmed herself.

"Are you alright?"

"I-I think so. Unless I didn't hear you wrong and somehow my girlfriend has been possessed by the spirit of her dead mother."

Amy/Rui smiled wanly. "Then I guess you're not alright, because you didn't hear me wrong," she sighed as Ninetails nuzzled her nose into her mistress' hand.

"Okay..." Gary said, gulping, "... how?"

Amy/Rui smirked. "How much, exactly, do you know about Ninetails in general?"

Gary frowned. "That... they're evolved from Vulpix with the fire stone, and that they're fire Pokémon?"

Rui/Amy chuckled. "Well yes, but did you know that Ninetails were considered legendary Pokémon by the ancients?"

"Um, no..." Gary raised an eyebrow.

Rui nodded. "Ninetails, when they reach a certain age, gain psychic powers that only intensify with their age. They appear exactly 100 years from the day the fire stone touches the Vulpix. This Ninetails, who name by the way is Rosetta, has been part of our family for generations as our guardian." Rui's eyes darkened, she seemed to be thinking. "I need to tell this story. I wish I could tell it to Amy, but I cannot, as her body was chosen to be the vessel for it. Will you tell her?" she asked Gary.

Gary, who was obviously freaking out, had little choice but to nod at that. Rui sent Amy's lips into a smirk and ruffled Gary's hair.

"Thanks," she said warmly and then took a deep breath, "This could take a little while. Celebi? Did you really leave into Time, or are you just hiding?"

"... Bi?" the green Pokémon flew out from behind a tree and slowly approached, seeming very shy.

"Could you hold us in a time pocket for a moment, just until I finish telling Gary everything I want Amy to know?"

"Bi Bi!" Celebi nodded, smiling, and there was a strange wave of energy, and the trees around the grove seemed to blur together and freeze, the air stilled.

"There now," Rui turned back to a completely bewildered Gary, still pretty much lying on his back and staring up at Amy's body with Rui's eyes. "Well... when I was a baby, I grew up with Rosetta watching over me and-"

"Wait! Hold it!" Gary interrupted, sitting up "I really don't need the life story. Can you PLEASE just tell the parts that are relevant to what's happening right now? Please?"

Rui raised an eyebrow and then snorted. "Okay, fine. Well, basically I joined Cipher when they were just an underground, scientist club. Then it took a nasty turn when our president decided to take over the world. I helped create the Shadow Pokémon with Ein yes, and I was wrong to do that. But at the time I did not like Pokémon. Rosetta was watching over me, but that was from afar. I grew up in an orphanage. I still have no idea what happened to my parents, or even who they were, and growing up in Orre meant that the only contact I had with most pokemon was just those held by trainers in Pyrite Town where the orphanage was and they were usually just fighting when I saw them. I made the Shadow Pokémon process and perfected it. Cipher was getting specimens for me to experiment on from Team Snag'em, and through them I met Wes. At first he seemed really into stealing Pokémon, but after a few meetings I had with him on a professional level he seemed less into it, then he broke off from them. I remember when he broke into the lab and kidnapped me to get Ein to give up his Shadow Pokémon files..."

"Why would kidnapping you...?"

"Oh, Ein and I were dating. Briefly!" Rui held up her hands. "I know he's a psycho. And anyway, he had no intention of giving up anything to save me. But when Wes was kidnapping me, Rosetta came and saved me." Rui gave the Ninetails an affectionate rub on the neck. "It was the first time I saw a Pokémon do something like that. Of course, I saw her as an exception to the rule. I escaped Wes and went back to Cipher with Rosetta, after naming her. I was welcomed back of course and came to learn that a woman had been discovered who saw the Shadow auras, besides myself. Until then I was considered an anomaly, so I was quite shocked. But before I could talk to her... I learned Ein had had her killed. _Killed_. I was horrified."

"Erm... understandable," Gary nodded, starting to wonder if this was some weird dream.

"Well, I thought maybe it would be the only time. I ignored it. Then more came in. At first only a couple, then Cipher started hunting them out. I turned my head away... until that little boy... he had to be _three_, and I walked into his cell to run tests. Ein had a _knife_. And he wasn't even aiming to kill, he was making tiny cuts across his body... the boy was _screaming..._" Rui covered her ears as if to hide from the echoes of pain long passed. "I couldn't take it anymore. I ran. Rosetta came with me. Through it all she stood by me. In the desert, I found Wes again. This time I was ready to join him in his rebellion." She smiled here. "We took out a lot of bases. We saved a lot of people who had Shadow Sight. Eventually, meeting Wes' Pokemon and all... I guess I realised Rosetta wasn't an exception, Pokémon were great! I felt terrible for what I'd done to them, more terrible that it took human suffering before I could properly act against the organization, so I worked to help them. The moment I realised this, I heard Rosetta for the first time," Rui looked elated, "She conveyed memories to me, of my mother and father. Not their identities, but their feeling, their images, it was lovely...'

'Anyway, Cipher found us eventually. They were bound to, I guess. We fought against them. They took me to their Shadow Pokémon base, the one you were held in, Gary. They turned Rosetta, then, into a Shadow Pokemon. They were going to kill me. After feeling the aura of such a close friend pulse in that black cloud I would've welcomed death, but Wes saved me. Saved us. We fled the region. I spent months calming Rosetta's aura which was the most pwoerful I had ever seen, but she never fully recovered... I knew she couldn't. I didn't know about Celebi, or the shrines. But I tried to make things work. I calmed her Hyper mode rages. I tried to help her fight it. I had Amy..." Rui laughed a little, "I remember you too of course, down the street. You two were always fighting. But it's good to see you together like this."

"Oh," Gary blinked, "Uh, th-thanks?"

"No problem," a grin, but it faded, "One day she was out with Wes. Rosetta flew into a rage. This time... I couldn't stop it. My friend..." Rosetta looked up at Rui with large eyes, suddenly shaking slightly, "I don't blame you! You... weren't in your right mind. I would never blame you for this. But..." she looked back at Gary, locking her eyes with his. "She killed me."

"That really screwed Wes up you know"

"I know," Rui sighed. "When my soul was leaving my body, I clung to Rosetta's mind. She felt me, and seemed to beg me to enter her. To help her hold in her rage. To save her. So... I did. I hoped to still watch over Amy, but Wes was driven absolutely bonkers." She shook her head. "He chased us out with a broom. Got rid of all our Shadow Pokémon we'd tried to save. Became paranoid without me to tell him what were shadow Pokémon and what weren't... I watched for a while, through Rosetta's eyes. Later we returned to Orre. We wanted to continue to fight Cipher, and maybe find a cure. But mostly we wandered desert. Rosetta still raged, I was a lost soul inside her, we had to fight ourselves more than Cipher...'

'Then, years later, I hear Amy was in Orre, and Wes soon after. And I had to find you. But instead I found Wes' new wife," her smile became sad. "I don't mind really that he remarried, I'm glad he moved on with his life. I found her in Agate. I listened to Beluh and Eagan explain things to her. When I heard that you went to the desert lab I felt my heart stop in my chest. When Delia reached the lab, Rosetta and I helped her get in, led her to the people... and you have no idea how good it felt to burn that Ein..." Rui ground her teeth. "I hope you can do worse to him by the end of this. I really do. He deserves it. So much."

"Totally. Will do," Gary nodded.

"... you're going to try very hard to just get out of Orre without dealing with him at all, aren't you?"

"Er... pretty much."

"... great," Rui frowned, "Well, still. I suppose you might be wondering how I'm possessing Amy right now"

"Yeah, yeah kinda," Gary frowned.

Rui smiled again, "Well, I sent my soul into Amy through Rosetta. But I was dormant inside her, Amy didn't feel me, and I could do nothing until Rosetta awakened me by looking into Amy's eyes."

"Okay," Gary nodded, "But her memories were erased, how did she know to unlock you?"

"Easy," Rui smiled gently in Amy's body, "I called to her. When the Shadow aura disappeared our connection was re-established. I awakened enough for her to feel me, inside Amy. But Celebi was the one who directed her to look Amy in the eyes to find me. And now," Rui sighed and looked up at the frozen sky, "It's time for me to go."

Celebi started and set time back in motion. The leaves rustled in the new breeze.

"... go?" Gary asked.

"Nine?" Amelia's eyes widened.

"Of course, I'm a spirit, I can't-"

"AAAAIIII!" a screamed pierced the air. It was coming from the village!

"Ninetails!" the fire fox took off.

"Oh no! Rosetta, you have to get me out of Amy- ROSETTA!" Rui looked quite alarmed and she and Gary quickly ran after Ninetails. Hopefully they'd catch her before they ran into anybody else...

Oh yeah. Gotta love that optimism


End file.
